God's Grace and Mercy

God's Grace And Mercy

God’s Grace and Mercy work hand in hand in Christ, who came to serve,
It is because of His Mercy, we do not receive what we truly deserve.
And it’s by God’s Grace; we do receive what we do not truly deserve.
This eternal message of Hope is to be preached until all have heard.

Our fallen nature deep within, creates a propensity for all to sin,
The effect from all our sin has been a filling of God’s indignation.
And what we deserve because of sin is God’s Righteous Condemnation.
All because God is Pure within and can not coexist with wicked sin.

Sin has a price that must be paid and our sins on Christ were laid,
The wages of sin is death my friend and this was Jesus’ earthly end.
God prepared a body for Him so Christ could die to take away our sin.
He who had no sin was made sin for us and then He died on the cross.

With an impossible task for us to face, God sent to us Saving Grace,
With man facing eternal death Jesus spoke this with His dying breath,
“It is finished! ” As He served a dying world what we didn’t deserve,
He came into this world of strife so that we could gain Eternal Life.

Jesus did not deserve to die, but my friend, He did it for you and I.
He left a Majestic Throne on high coming to earth so we wouldn’t die.
Becoming a curse for you and me, Christ pardoned our sin at Calvary,
And only through Him can we live in Heaven with God through Eternity.

Amazing Grace [ song]

amazing grace

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, Who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.
When we've been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Than when we'd first begun.

[For therein is the righteousness of god revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith.] (Romans: 1,17)

Thank you Lord Jesus , for putting this song in my Heart!! Praise God !!!

For as he thinketh in his heart ,so is he.

"For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he." Proverbs 23:7

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
There was a sign in a business that said, "We are not what we think we are; what we think -- we are." What are you allowing into your mind that is thereby controlling your heart, your actions, and your words? God made you so that you can't think two thoughts at one time. If you're thinking what's right, you can't be thinking what's wrong. And as you think, you will become. Guard your mind. Center your mind upon the Lord Jesus. Don't let the devil take away your pure-hearted devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. Stay in love with Jesus and there won't be any room for those filthy, dirty, wicked, lascivious, lustful, and prideful thoughts that bombard us all.
Start today to become more active in marshalling your thoughts and bringing them into obedience to Christ (2 Cor. 10:5).
Use Phil. 4:8 as a sieve through which you pass each thought.

Hardened Hearts

DEVOTIONS:
Title: Hardened Hearts

Read Psalm 95:7-11
We find a warning in today's passage. "Today, if you will hear His voice: Do not harden your hearts" (vv. 7,8). The context is the nation of Israel in the wilderness. From Egypt to Canaan, they saw God at work. He led them out of Egypt, through the wilderness and into the Promised Land. And what did they do in return? They hardened their hearts.
How do we harden our hearts? It's a process that occurs gradually as we complain about God's work and ignore His Word. The Israelites complained about the way He led them and the way He fed them. They heard God's Word and deliberately disobeyed. This is called tempting God. "When your fathers tested Me; they tried Me, though they saw My work. For forty years I was grieved with that generation" (v. 9).
When you see God at work and you complain instead of rejoice, when you hear His Word and deliberately disobey it--you're tempting Him. It's like a little child just daring mom or dad to discipline him. When you harden your heart, you miss God's best for your life. The people of Israel saw the miracles. They heard the messages. They were fed day after day. But in a period of 40 years, that whole older generation died. They did not enter into the fullness of their inheritance.
What should you do to prevent a hard heart? Repent. Listen to God's Word and respond to it tenderly. Watch God's work and respond to it thankfully. Stop complaining and disobeying. Worship the Lord and keep a tender heart before Him.

Granda's old Hymn book

Amazing Grace

In that old Hymn book her memories
stay, Grandma's weathered hands,
held this book so tight, every
Sunday, from it's torn pages she
sang in his light.

As a child I watched as her tears fell
upon page 57, 'Amazing Grace'
how sweet her sound. Her voice of an
angel reached the Heaven's above,
my Grandma truly felt God's love.

On the day that she passed, in a
Nursing Home she lay, I never
intended on her being in that place.
With tears in my eyes, I gathered
her things, among them, that old
tattered Hymn book, from which
she use to sing.

I sat there on her bed, tears filled
my eyes, searched for that page,
where many tears, she had cried.
Holding the book to my heart, I
heard her sing, I felt her presence,
the memories came flooding in
on me.

So lost in this sweet little lady's
book, I could feel her tears upon that
page. I felt the warmth of her hands
where she held that old book, tears fell
softly upon my face, as one last time,
on page 57, I took a long look.

I saw her reflection, her soft grey
hair, the tears in her eyes, fell
upon the page there. Amazing
Grace, I can hear my angel sing,
throughout the Heavens as she
finally gets her well deserved
wings.

I closed that old hymn book with
my trembling hands, held it close
as I prepared to leave her room
for the last time. Amazing grace,
that was her song, In the stillness
of the night, I can hear her lovely
voice, the Heavenly angels are
singing along.
Jan Bagwell 8/29/07

Whatever your task , put yourselves into it .

Devotions:
Doing God's Work

Read Exodus 35:20 – 36:1

Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord.

-Colossians 3:23 (NRSV)
RECENTLY our congregation celebrated a century of worshiping in our church building. Fifty years earlier, while the sanctuary was being renovated, some of the long beams supporting the roof needed to be replaced. A woodworker in the church fashioned new beams with intricate millwork, perfectly matching those from the original structure. During the worship service today, I looked at the beams, marveling at the skill required to do the work. I thought of the artisan who so wonderfully contributed to our building.

Most of us do not have the skill to accomplish feats such as that one, but we have other talents that God can use. Some of us visit the sick and the homebound. Others provide rides for older adults who need to shop, to see the doctor, or to attend church. Every church needs people to serve on committees. Some people have a knack for working with youth. Teachers, choir members, ushers, and nursery attendants play a vital role in the life of the church. Those who prepare food for the bereaved express God's care.

Each of us is given ways to do God's work, if we prayerfully listen for God's call and answer according to our abilities. All our gifts and service are valuable in the eyes of God.


Loving God, lead us to serve according to our talents so that we contribute to your kingdom. Amen.

Fear

"And I, if I be lifted up from the earth,
will draw all men unto Me." John 12:32


DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

For the first time in history, man is afraid of what he knows.
His head and his hands have outrun his heart, and we are being
faced with things for which we have no answers -- the plague of AIDS,
the tinderbox in the Middle East, the outbreaks of famine,
the irregular weather disturbances, and much more.
But, we don't have to wring our hands and say, "What is the
world coming to?" We can look up and say, "Who is the world coming to?"
It's coming to Jesus! Praise God!

"It is the heart that makes a man rich.
He is rich according to what he is,
not according to what he has."

The Lord is my shepherd

DEVOTIONS:

AND HE TOOK THE CHILDREN IN HIS ARMS, PUT HIS HANDS
ON THEM AND BLESSED THEM.
( MARK 10:16 *NIV )


Indeed, Jesus loves little children for they believe in those they
trust with all their hearts. They have an open mind and are eager
to learn and believe all that they can. Jesus even said that adults
should believe in Him with the same childlike faith. After all Jesus
said: "ASSUREDLY, I SAY TO YOU, WHOEVER DOES NOT
RECEIVE THE KINGDOM OF GOD AS A LITTLE CHILD WILL BY
NO MEANS ENTER IT." ( MARK 10:15 )

For out of the mouths of babe's, sometimes comes true wisdom indeed!

A Shortened Version of 23rd Psalm

In his beautiful book, "I Shall Not Want," Robert Ketchum tells
of a Sunday School teacher who asked her group of children if
anyone could quote the entire 23rd Psalm. A golden-haired, four-
and-a-half-year-old girl was among those who raised their hands.
A bit skeptical, the teacher asked if she could really quote the
entire Psalm. The little girl came to the front of the room, faced the
class, made a perky little bow, and said,
"The Lord is my shepherd, that's all I want."
Cute and so true.....

Valley Township does have green pastures, for sure, and the Lord is my Shepherd! I hope and pray He is yours!