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Some of you may know that I serve part-time as social media coordinator for USMB conference.  One of the things I have done on their social media is share Bible verses with images that tie in with the words.  I decided to start sharing them weekly here on the blog. I hope you grow in your understanding of who God is from these verses.

My Aunt Kay Jean suggested I start sharing a verse of the day.  I liked her suggestion but decided instead of a verse of the day, I would share a verse of the week.  Be reminded of who God is from His Word.   But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

Here are my sermon notes from my message today at Hesston MB.  Advent: The Power of Songs Luke 2:19 & Selected Verses Introduction : This advent, we are focusing on head, heart, and hands.   As a church we talk a lot about discipleship in the area of head, heart, and hands.   But what exactly is meant by the heart in Scripture?   How do you understand “heart”? Read Luke 2:19 Thoughts on the heart: ·          21  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. ( Matthew 6:21) ·          Above all else, guard your heart,   for everything you do flows from it. (Proverbs 4:23) ·          The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9) ·          5  and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has b...

I am part of a launch team for Robby Gallaty's new book, Rediscovering Discipleship. I enjoyed Robby's first book on growing as a disciple.  The book releases at the end of October and I am about halfway through the book.  In his first book, he focuses on developing an intentional plan for "disciples making disciples."  In the first part of this book, he gives a background of discipleship from Jesus through several key figures in church history.  Below are some quotes that stood out to me: Until disciple-making becomes the ministry of the church and not a ministry in the church, we will never see our discipleship efforts impact the world the way that Jesus envisioned. we are equal in the eyes of God because he loves us based upon the righteousness of Christ, not our good deeds or works. When a rabbi tells a story, he speaks to the heart first and the head second. Traditionally, Western ways of thinking tend to speak to the head first and the heart ...

The following is a quote from Lutheran Theology by Steven Paulson on the law and our hearts. The real issue in the law is the first table that concerns the sinner's relation to God, not her neighbor. That relation comes down to the first commandment that demands a good, clean heart. One is either good in heart or not; there is no cherry picking by Jews or Gentiles for which law accuses and which one excuses. Judges point the finger rightly at the wicked, but miss the point about their righteous selves. The real matter concerning the law is the heart, and the heart cannot be made good by the law. The law is not spiritual, meaning that it cannot create anything, especially not a new heart. The law reveals your heart as good or bad as light reveals what hides in darkness, but Paul now claims that the law has already made its universal judgment and come to its fatal conclusion: there is no good heart anywhere...The reason is that the wrath of God has been revealed, the end of self-j...

In the adult Go Deeper class I teach, we will be going through Good and Beautiful Community by James Bryan Smith in the next month.  It is book 3 of the Apprentice series.  The first two books look at who God is and how we live.  Book 3 focuses on us as the body of Christ. Below are some quotes from the introduction: When we move into this area, it is easy to lose the main focus (the heart) and put all of the emphasis on the wrong thing (the activity itself). Living faith is trust and confidence in God expressed in acts of love in our human relations and encounters with one another. Personal piety without social action can also become self-righteous and insensitive and lead to burnout. The problems are, ironically, identical. Both tend to see their actions (service or prayer) as they way to earn the favor of God and humans...And both lead to burnout because they are not empowered by the Spirit, only by the flesh. We are prone, he said, to put the emphasis on the a...

Do you understand how much Jesus loves you?  No, really?  Have you grasped His great love for you?  This song by Elevation Worship does a great job reminding us about that love and what He did for us.  I hope you grasp His love at a deeper level today.

We sing about them.  We are encouraged by them.  But do we know them?  What are the promises of God?  Today's Bible verse reminds us that all the promises are yes in Christ.  I will be sharing various promises of God over the next few months.  Check back often. 18  As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. 19  For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. 20  For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. 21  And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, 22  and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. (2 Corinthians 1:18-22)

Listen to Priscilla Shirer's thoughts from her book, God Is Able regarding the truth of God's ability. But you cannot out-ask, out-pray, out-dream, or out-believe in the willingness and ability of God. The Father's ability to give to us exceeds our ability to ask. And when your heart is set on this truth, you're standing on a fact that will never change in a highly changeable and challenging world. It will help you sleep easier, laugh harder, and live more peacefully in the midst of trying times. So as hard as it is to deal with whatever it is you're enduring, you are walking in 100 percent truth when you turn your heart, mind, and spirit all the way toward God's ability. This posture puts you in the most receptive position of all with which to watch Him at work.

Based on our reading of DiscipleShift, Pastor Brad wanted a new banner for church sanctuary. Thanks to Brittni Rhodes for the design!

As many of you know, Molly (my youngest daughter) chose to follow Jesus last night.  We are so excited that all of our children are followers of Jesus.  Because we were not good about writing things down with the previous kids, I wanted to write something to remember the actual date of Molly's decision. It all began on Friday of last week on the way to Wichita.  Mitchell, Megan, and I were headed to Winter Jam at Intrust Bank Arena.  As we were pulling up to Intrust, Molly said, "I want to ask Jesus into my heart." Bethany and I were caught offguard and the traffic was pushing us forward.  We decided we would talk with Molly later. I have been praying for all my kids to Love God & Love Others.  I also pray for them to grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ.  I have been praying for Molly from a young age that she would make a decision to follow Jesus.  So, throughout the weekend, I continued to pray that if this was the Holy Spirit s...

Yesterday, I posted about asking God to speak to me directly from His Word.  I use the pattern of Samuel when he said, "Speak, for your servant is listening" from 1 Samuel 3:1-10. Here is the passage God put on my heart on Thursday from Proverbs 3:1-12 3  My son,do not forget my teaching,      but keep my commands in your heart, 2  for they will prolong your life many years      and bring you peace and prosperity. 3  Let love and faithfulness never leave you;      bind them around your neck,      write them on the tablet of your heart. 4  Then you will win favor and a good name      in the sight of God and man. 5  Trust in the Lord with all your heart      and lean not on your own understanding; 6  in all your ways submit to him,      and he will make your paths straight. 7  Do not be wise i...