What you focus on you feast on!

Have you ever noticed that what's on your mind can control your entire day? If someone says something unkind to us we stew on it.  And pretty soon they are a horrible, ugly person...and have always been that way. We no longer have anything good to say about them.
Tell yourself today that we out can't have sugar. I grantee that within 2 hours you will have had some! 🍰 And not just one snack, perhaps 2-3.

Folks this is just the reason that we are told to focus on Christ! The more we think about him the more of him we desire. The more we desire the more we delight in receiving what we set our eyes on.  What you focus on (positively or negatively) is what you feast on.

“I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭16:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Sing-Along-Saturday

Are you living in the freedom of Christ? Have you stood up from the mound of chains that the enemy heaped upon you? Let Bethel Worship lead you in finding that freedom.

Click to hear No Longer A Slave

Keep Loving Until They Understand

Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin.  

But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is.

1 John 3:6

All the more reason to love those who hurt us!  All the more reason to offer grace to those who are living life encouraged by sin and destruction!  People who don't love others, and who continue sinning, do so because they do not understand who Jesus is!  Then why are we judging those who are sinning instead of offering them forgiveness and mercy?  When someone sins against us, our response should be forgiveness and love.  When someone makes a choice that goes against God's law, our response should be truth spoken in love.  We don't have to adopt their actions as our own and we certainly don't have to agree with what they do, but we must love.  As christians we base our life on Jesus Christ dying on the cross for us.  Our sins were washed away by His blood and through that promise we are able to offer that same love to those who haven't yet accepted it.  Has it been offered to them, absolutely, but for some reason the timing wasn't right and or they didn't understand it.  This makes our actions most important.  How will we respond to those who sin?  Will we offer them love like Jesus or would we judge them and condemn them?  Which way will win their heart faster?  

Dear God,

Forgive me for the times I do not love as I should.  Help me to put away my tendency to judge others and instead give me the ability to love as you do.  Yes I can know who is your follower and who is not by her actions but it isn't my job to punish her for it.  You put me on this earth to love and be loved.  Help me to love well.    

Until the whole world hears and understands, we will keep on loving and sharing the Good News!

The Greatest Love

"I love my coworker, but he is so rude. I just can't take him anymore."
"I love my brother, but he is such a poor choice maker. I just can't stand it."
"I love the people who I work with, but they are so unreasonable that I just can't do this job another
     day."

All day long I hear the word 'love', but do we really love?

Love is this...
     A man murders your sister, so you lay your life down in order that he can be set free.
     A thief takes all of your belongings and destroys your home, and in exchange you serve his life
        sentence.
     A once called friend slanders your name across town, and in response you carpool her children
        when her car is broken down along the freeway.

Love is this...
     A sibling makes unwise choices, and you help pick up the broken pieces without question.
     Your spouse short changes you, and you clean the house and do extra tasks without being asked.
     Your loud, annoying coworker just won't stop talking, and you bring him coffee the next morning
         and thank him for helping finish the project on time.

You see, love looks past the sin and sees a soul that was created by a loving God. Love overcomes the sin and cherishes the sinner. Love cares more for others than self!

And what is more, the greatest love is this...
     Christ, bloody and bruised, for your sin, your mess-ups, your lies, and your unkind actions.
     It is Christ, on a cross, for your imperfections, your murderous thoughts, your selfishness, and
          your pride.
     It is Christ, God in flesh, dying on a cross so you can begin each day with a fresh, righteous and
          holy slate.
     Love is God, turning his back in unbearable, excruciating pain as his son suffered mocking,
          beatings, humiliating taunts, for your foolish and careless actions.
     God, in Christ, is love.

I accentuated the word 'your' because it sure is easier to overlook someone else's sin and annoyances when you remember that it was for your sin that Christ suffered and died. He died for all of us. We were each on his mind as he journeyed to Golgotha and hung on that rugged cross. Oh, how great a love is this!

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that anyone who believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

Dear Jesus,
I confess that I am quick to judge, selfish with the love you generously give to me, and petty about others offenses. Give me eyes that see the value of each one I come in contact with today. Help me to live in the freedom of your grace, but let my sin never be so far from my memory that I forget the grace that you have shown me. Oh, Lord, teach me to love well. Amen

Remain In Fellowship

And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame.

1 John 2:28

Fellowship is two or more people bound together usually because they have the same interest or aim. Words to desicribe fellowship include: companionship, friendship, camaraderie, mutual support and togetherness.  Do any of these describe your current relationship with Jesus? John writes to the people urging them to stay in fellowship with Christ because the only way we can live like Christ is to know how Christ lives.  And the only way we can know how He lives is to study His life through scripture.  The bible is the single most important text we can read to help us with our relationship with Christ.  If we aren't reading it then we aren't staying close to Jesus.  How could we?  How could we possibly know what Jesus would do in a situation if we don't know anything about his life?  

If we back up to verse 24 John states that we must remain faithful to what we have been taught from the beginning......"If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father"(1 John 2:24).  What things have we been taught?  How much have we studied?  There is a direct correlation between what we know and what we have studied.......if we are in our bibles studying the history and the stories about Jesus and God then we will know much about them.  We will know their commands and promises therefore we can obey them and base our lives on them, keeping us in fellowship.  Since we can't have dinner with Jesus and we can't go on a weekend retreat with God, in physical form, our fellowship is found in our meeting with them in scripture, from our willingness to obey and our devotion to remaining faithful to God's word instead of the world's.  

Friends, staying in fellowship with Jesus is the most important thing we can do!  Especially because we don't know when He is coming back.  The end times will be hard!  The world is already asking us to live with new laws that go against God's laws.....it will only get harder!  We must know God and find friendship with Jesus in order to stay strong until the end!  Please if you have any questions on how to get started or you need encouragement to keep in the Word don't hesitate to email us.  We want to help you!        

Sunday Scripture

“I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.”
‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭1:10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Sing-A-Long Saturday

What words flow from your mouth? Scripture says, "Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be." (James 3:10) So let's opt to let the words of our mouth and the meditations of our hearts praise the Lord!

Your Praise Will Ever Be on My Lips by Bethel