01
Jun '20
Parenting in Difficult Times
01
Jun '20
What kind of legacy are we leaving our children… especially in our nation’s current situation? What we are facing seems to be a difficult, challenging, and very interesting time in our lives right now. How are we reacting, what are we saying, how are we loving, steering, and guiding our children through this time?
At first things seemed to be going okay. Staying home, watching movies and schooling at home seemed to be “fun” at the moment – until it continued week after week. Those routines seemed to exit the mind as quickly as they came. Schoolwork became a fight, meal times sporadic, screen time continued to increase and attitudes became more evident.
Being socially distant is not a normal thing for adults – let alone children – so when it continued week after week it started to affect everyone.
Our children are watching our words and actions each hour of the day. How have I handled this? Well, not always with love and patience, but with God’s help and guidance He picks me back up each time I fail and fall. It is so important to remember that God is in control and He is our help!
God is our refuge and STRENGTH, a very present help in trouble. Psalms 46:1
We are not alone in this, and we need His help and guidance each day. There is so much information out there telling us what we should be doing and not doing that it can be hard to keep them straight.
The most important thing to remember? Stay focused on the information that is TRUE – that being God’s Word. There are so many truths and lessons we can learn from these experiences we are going through… don’t miss them!
In Proverbs 22:6 it says to “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it”
We have a wonderful opportunity as parents to instill some very good life lessons into our children. When we are pushed into things we are not use to, how do we react and guide our children?
Do we speak truth?
Do we show love no matter what?
Do I point them to Christ?
Personally, this is a challenge for me every single day, but I pray each morning for God to help me choose Godly responses. I know I can’t raise these children on my own so I need to keep seeking out truth to teach them and pray that they choose for themselves to follow him.
When my kids look back at this experience, I pray they will remember how we as a family stayed united and sought after God’s truth through it all.
I’m sure they are going to remember the screaming and impatience I had during school work (Lord, help me!) but I sure hope they will remember the strength and comfort we took in God’s word to protect and guide us. He alone is our constant helper and an ever present help in time of need.
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! Psalm 121:2
How has your parenting been going during this crisis? Whether rocky or smooth sailing, remember His mercies are new every morning. Our Savior loves your children even more than you do! Entrust your heart to Him and allow Him to work in and through you to be the best parent you can be. Parents, you’ve got this!
Author:
Faith Kids lead
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27
Apr '20
We Have a Choice
27
Apr '20
We have all been hit in some way, shape or form from fallout of COVID-19. Whether it be financially, socially, physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually; we can all relate to those areas being affected in our lives. Just like anything else in life though, we have a choice on how we handle those areas affected.
Many things are out of our control, but how we choose to respond is within our control.
I’ve found the easiest way to justify or make excuses (at least at the time in my head) is to blame someone or something else for my problems. Or if something doesn’t go the way we like at work, home, or whatever area you want to apply it to, it’s easy to point the finger and think in our head, “If I was in charge this wouldn’t have happened”, or “I could do a better job than that person”.
While sometimes these statements may be true, we still have a choice on how we respond. It is no different to apply when it comes to the current situation in our world and more specifically our country. I continue to hear the blame game from everyone and everything I read. Sure, things could always be done better.
We as citizens of this country – and more importantly as Christians – have an obligation to be in prayer for the situation and for our all of our leaders. We also are called to be thankful in all situations.
So instead of complaining about our current situation, let’s all try to focus on being thankful. Thankful that no matter what, no one can ever take my relationship with Jesus from me. I am thankful that he is always in control because Heaven and earth are filled with his glorious presence.
Isaiah 6:3 “And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”
We can’t run the world better than God. Even if we think he is mismanaging things, we can’t know what He knows or see what He sees. He calls us to live by faith and not by sight.
2 Corinthians 5:7 “For we live by faith, not by sight.”
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
This is a call to acknowledge His sovereignty by being thankful in all situations. With everything going on in the world, it’s not easy. But we can choose hope, choose gratefulness, choose to fix our eyes on Jesus.
Through all the seasons – through it all – He is faithful and if we are Christ-followers, we are secure in His everlasting arms. Let this song minister to your heart today.
Author:
Worship Leader, Faith Assembly
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31
Mar '20
The Bread of Jealousy – You Have a Purpose
31
Mar '20
Barley vs. wheat
While the Jews of Jesus time were capable of making breads of various grains, the two most common grains used were barley and wheat. Barley had a grainier texture and tasted a little bland while the wheat bread was softer and sweeter to the taste. In most cases, people preferred the flavor of the wheat, and would naturally gravitate to its choice over any of the other types, including and especially barley. So, when preparing the grocery list for the family, one might notice the wheat stores were highest in demand all year, so much so that it tended to run out before the next harvest.
Here’s where barley comes in to save the day. The barley harvest was generally three weeks earlier than the wheat harvest, and that caused folks to flock the markets looking for the less desirable barley loaves to “make due” until the wheat harvest came in. The barley loaves were meant to keep the belly full, more than pleasing the pallet. The rest of the year, folks would resort to the barley loaves when they were pinching pennies or feeding larger families with children. So, the barley got the nickname “Bread of Jealousy”, always wishing to be loved as much as the wheat.
The miracle from His hand
In John 6: 1 – 15 we find the story of Jesus feeding the crowd of five thousand. Did you ever notice that when He borrowed the little boy’s lunch it was consisting of 5 small barley loaves? Like I said earlier, sometimes parents would buy the barley to save money and fill the hollow legs of children, while probably – secretly – keeping a stash of wheat for themselves (kind of like your secret supply of chocolate).
In this case there is an entire crowd of Jesus’ children gathering, and remembering the Passover is quickly approaching, He feels the need to feed them. I find it interesting that in all the times Israel complained about God’s provisions for them in the desert, there is no complaint the bread they’re getting is plain barley and not the sweet wheat.
You know the story. He blesses the meal of barley bread and fish and then feeds the entire crowd… to the point the disciples gathered up 12 baskets of leftovers from the barley loaves. And, before you think the leftovers were from finicky eaters who turned their noses up, the Apostle John notes (John 6:12) the crowd was “filled” full… they all ate to being full.
Here’s one thing I find fascinating from this story. God is a master at using, what we would call, the lesser product for His amazing purposes through His wisdom and power.
Perhaps you feel like the lesser product, and you can relate to the “Bread of Jealousy” wishing to be loved as much as what you perceive to be the “preferred bread”. Usually, that’s because we simply can’t grasp the beauty of our own unique purpose. If there was no Barley Bread getting families through until the wheat harvest came in, then they would go hungry and Jesus would have had to find another food to make His miracle.
Remember, it wasn’t the wheat that received the miracle from His hand…it was the barley. So a note to all of us barley people… let’s let our Father in Heaven remind us that He has real and important purposes for us in mind.
Author:
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10
Jun '19
What Are You Choosing Today?
10
Jun '19
Each and every day, we get to choose which path our day is going to follow.
We can choose to be positive and look at the day with excitement and enthusiasm… or we can be a negative, pessimistic person and look at the things we need to get done with a negative perspective.
We get to choose how our day will start and end.
What a privilege and challenge at the same time.
Psalm 143: 8
Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
When we put our trust in Him and listen to what He wants us to do in life, our path seems to take on a positive vibe even when things don’t go our way. It’s not always an easy path to find – but once you do – it is well worth it.
Lately, I have tried to make a conscious decision to start my day with a positive attitude.
Does that happen every day? Absolutely not. Do I make it my goal? Yes.
Over the past few years I have been dealing with chronic back pain to which no treatments have been successful. There have been so many ups and downs and even though I believed and trusted God would take care of me, I still struggled. It wasn’t until after a recent treatment that made me worse than before, did I realize that I needed to change my prayer life.
While driving to church, I heard a song by Natalie Grant. The chorus to “More than Anything” really hit me hard:
Help me want the healer more than the healing
Help me want the savior more than the saving
Help me want the giver more than the giving
Oh help me want you Jesus, more than anything
In my mind and prayers over the years, I would ask for healing in His time.
As patient as I thought I was being, I realized I needed to change my mindset of what God was teaching me about himself.
When I decided to turn my wants and physical needs to more of a relationship-prayer life –
focused on learning more about the heart of God – did I come to this realization:
Each day is a gift from God.
I need to live in the moment of where I am right now.
I need to want the HEALER more than the healing.
Don’t get me wrong, it is absolutely okay to pray for physical healing – He wants us to pray for it.
But He also wants us to focus more our relationship and the discovery of who He is.
What an amazing God we serve that he tells us in Isaiah 46:4-13
I am your God and will take care of you until you are old and your hair is gray. I made you and will care for you; I will give you help and rescue you. “To whom will you compare me?” says the Lord. “Is there anyone else like me?
Matthew 6:26-27
Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
So who are we as Christians to worry about tomorrow (or dwell on our aches and pains) when he promises He will take care of us.
We can remind ourselves of this daily and choose to be a positive, optimistic person – choosing to have faith in God’s great love for us.
Choose today to be positive and joyful. Choose relationship. Choose discovery of Him.
Author:
Faith Kids Ministry, Faith Assembly
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15
Apr '19
Capture Every Thought
15
Apr '19
Can you imagine if every one of our thoughts was on display for everyone around us to view as we were thinking it real time?
That’s a pretty scary thought.
Over the past year I have learned a lot about anxiety and fear.
It never occurred to me until a wise, Christ-following friend pointed out
that it all starts with a thought.
My response to that revelation was,
“But the thoughts just keep coming and the first place my mind goes is to the worst case scenario or most severe outcome.”
I thank God for using this friend to speak His wisdom to me… because their next response was Spirit-led and inspired.
They brought me to the scripture in 2 Corinthians 10:5:
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
Then they shared something I could really relate to about capturing the thoughts that cause anxiety or fear. Here was the advice:
Take the thought that comes into your head, think of taking a lasso and capture the thought – then throw it out of your head.
Then, think of Jesus.
This concept hit home with me and has really helped me get control of thoughts that can lead to stress, anxiety and fear.
You may not struggle with thoughts that cause anxiety, stress, or fear. Maybe you struggle with thoughts leading to depression, lust, pride or a variety of other battles. No matter what the thoughts are that come into our head, we can remain victorious if we make an effort to take the thought captive and focus (fix our eyes) on Jesus.
This is the key my friends – keeping Jesus at the center of every thought we have and asking him to help us take it captive.
He will help us overcome!
With every breath, with every thought, we need Jesus to meet us.
Be encouraged by “Here Again”
Author:
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27
Nov '18
4 Things to Do When You Feel Attacked
27
Nov '18
Let’s face it, life is challenging. Some seasons are worse than others. Approaching the holiday season is no exception.
There is a lot of material out there addressing the subject of spiritual warfare, and it can make you head spin trying to sort it all out. Here are just a few quick thoughts for you to chew on.
The Enemy of Our Souls Prefers to Attack Us When We’re Tired
Exhaustion makes us vulnerable. Sometimes the attack comes from people you’d normally think you could trust… and at times, least suspect. Just remember, it’s not them alone. The enemy easily works both angles.
Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6:12
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
Spiritual Attacks Come When We Least Expect Them
Not looking? Watch out. Attacks can come our way during moments when we think we’re feeling pretty good or strong. Like a skilled boxer, the enemy is strategic. He uses a quick jab to surprise us, distract us, knock us off balance and mess with our confidence.
Keep in Mind – It’s His Job
God calls our enemy the “accuser of the brethren”. Don’t allow him the satisfaction of making you feel weak or victimized. Claim your rightful identity in Christ, who defeated him long ago. Let your Heavenly Father use the opportunity to continue making you wise as He toughens you up in the process. At the end of all this, he is a defeated foe and he knows it. The last thing he wants is to see you stand strong in the power of Christ, denying your pride and running the race full on.
Revelation 12:10 “Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.”
Remember, God Has Instilled Himself in You
His wisdom is in you. His strength is in you. He has adopted you into His family and He’s given you a purpose in His kingdom.
1 John 4:4 “You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.”
It helps to keep things in proper perspective. Take practical care of yourself; it helps to guard against exhaustion. Keep the truth of God’s Word close to you so it feeds your soul and protects your heart. Remember who you really are – a member of God’s family, a precious child of the King, full of His Spirit and resurrection power. When you feel attacked, look to Jesus.
Author:
Jon Marx, Lead Pastor of Faith Assembly
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