Our Awesome God

  Psalm 23:1 ​"The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need." ​Micah 3:1-5 ​"Listen, you leaders of Israel! You are supposed to know right from wrong, yet you are the very ones who hate good and love evil. You skin my people alive and tear the flesh from their bones. Yes, you eat my people’s flesh, strip off their skin, and break their bones. You chop them up like meat for a cooking pot. Then you will cry to the Lord for help, but he will not answer. He will hide his face from you because of all the evil you have done. This is what the Lord says you false prophets: 'You lead my people astray! You promise peace for those who give you food, but you declare war on anyone who refuses to feed you.'" ​3 John 1:11 ​"Dear friend, don’t let this bad example influence you. Follow only what is good. Remember that those who do good prove that they are God’s children, and those who do evil prove that they do not know God." ​Acts 16:25 ​"Around midnight ...

 Patiently Waiting to Shouting for Joy Scripture Readings (NLT) Psalm 145:8 "The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love." Lamentations 3:25–26 "The Lord is good to those who depend on Him, to those who search for Him. So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord." 1 John 5:11 "And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son." Psalm 71:23 "I will shout for joy and sing your praises, for You have ransomed me." Reflection Life often leads us into seasons of waiting. We wait for answers, for healing, for restored relationships, for open doors, or simply for God to reveal His next step. Waiting can feel lonely. It can tempt us to become discouraged or to wonder if God has forgotten us. Yet throughout Scripture, we discover that waiting on the Lord is never wasted because our confidence rests, not in our circumstances, but in the unchanging characte...

  Jesus, The Bread That Truly Satisfies Scripture Readings (NLT) John 6:35 "Jesus replied, 'I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.'" John 11:25 "Jesus told her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying.'" John 4:14 "But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life." Exodus 16:4 Then the lord said to Moses, “Look, I’m going to rain down food from heaven for you. Each day the people can go out and pick up as much food as they need for that day. I will test them in this to see whether or not they will follow my instructions. Deuteronomy 8:3 Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alo...

 A Heart Filled with Thanksgiving Even in Times of Need Scripture Readings (NLT) Psalm 100:4 "Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name." Psalm 9:1 "I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done." Psalm 86:11 "Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you." 1 Chronicles 29:13 "O our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name!" Psalm 28:7 "The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving." 2 Corinthians 9:15 "Thank God for this gift too wonderful for words!" 1 Thessalonians 5:18 "Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." Hebrew Word Study The ancient Hebrew word for "t...

 Running the Race with Endurance, Grace, and Hope Scripture Readings (NLT) "Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts." — 2 Timothy 2:22 "So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up." — Galatians 6:9 "The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love." — Psalm 145:8 "Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." — Philippians 2:9–11 Our Christian life is often described as a race, but it is not a sprint. It is a daily marathon that requires both acti...

  Standing Strong in Love and Faith Scripture Readings (NLT) 1 John 4:18 "Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love." Psalm 145:14 "The Lord helps the fallen and lifts those bent beneath their loads." 1 Timothy 6:12 "Fight the good fight for the true faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have declared so well before many witnesses. The Pathway from Fear to Victory Life often feels like a series of battles. We face the weight of daily anxieties, the sting of unexpected failures, the pain of loss, and the exhaustion of trying to keep it all together. When we feel overwhelmed, fear whispers that we are alone, that we are not enough, and that our struggles will define us. But God tells a completely different story. Throughout Scripture, we see a beautiful progression that leads us from fear to...

  Standing Firm Until the End Matthew 24:13 "But the one who endures to the end will be saved." Mark 13:13 "But the one who endures to the end will be saved." Romans 2:7 "He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers." Revelation 2:10 "Don't be afraid of what you are about to suffer... Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life." Our Christian life is rarely described in Scripture as a sprint. Instead, God's Word consistently presents our journey of faith as a marathon—one that requires steady endurance, unwavering trust, and faithful perseverance. In the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, Jesus paints a sobering picture of the trials, deception, persecution, and opposition believers will face in a broken world. Yet, right in the middle of those warnings, He anchors us with a promise that has encouraged Christians for centuries: ...

 God's Unshakable Heart Psalm 145:8-9 “The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.” Hosea 2:16 “When that day comes,” says the Lord, “you will call me ‘my husband’ instead of ‘my master.’” Psalm 37:5 “Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you.” Lamentations 5:19 “But Lord, you remain the same forever! Your throne continues from generation to generation.” God's Unshakable Heart Life rarely stands still. Seasons change. Children grow up. Loved ones move away or pass into eternity. Churches experience change. Pastors come and go. Our health changes. Our finances rise and fall. Even our nation continues to change as each generation leaves its own mark. Sometimes it feels like we are trying to stand on shifting sand. Yet God's Word reminds us that while everything around us changes, God never does. Psalm 145 paints one of the most bea...

  Holding Fast at 250 Years ​ Scriptures ​ Psalm 33:12 – "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." ​ 1 Timothy 2:1-2 – "I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness." ​ Amos 9:11 – "In that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen." ​ Revelation 3:11 – "Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown." ​ The Foundation of Blessing ​Today marks exactly 250 years since the birth of the United States of America. A semiquincentennial is a rare milestone in human history. It invites us to look back with gratitude and look forward with vigilance. Psalm 33:12 reminds us, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." ​The Hebrew word used here for "blessed" is אֶשֶׁר ( esher ). It means deep,...

  The Cost of Freedom in Christ! Romans 6:14 (NLT) "Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God's grace." 2 Corinthians 3:17 (NLT) "For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." John 14:16–17 (NLT) "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn't looking for him and doesn't recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you." Isaiah 43:18–19 (NLT) "But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland." The Cost of True Freedom Freedom is one of God'...

  The Ripple Effect of a Humble Heart Micah 6:8 (NLT) "No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God." Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT) "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take." Ephesians 4:32 (NLT) "Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you." Amos 5:24 (NLT) "Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living." James 1:27 (NLT) "Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you." Our personal spiritual growth was never meant to remain a private secret. When God transforms us on the inside, that transformation naturally flows...

 The Foundation of True Freedom: Love, Liberty, and Justice in Christ Scripture Reading (NLT) 1 John 4:19 (NLT) "We love each other because he loved us first." Amos 5:24 (NLT) "Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living." Psalm 33:12 (NLT) "What joy for the nation whose God is the Lord, whose people he has chosen as his inheritance." Galatians 5:1 (NLT) "So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law." The Origin of Our Freedom True freedom is not the absence of boundaries—it is the presence of a loving Creator. When we examine the meaning of freedom, we must begin at its source. Human effort alone cannot produce lasting liberty. True freedom originates in the very character of God. God's First Love → Enables Our Love → Produces True Liberty In 1 John 4:19, the Apostle John presents a profound truth in simple words: "We love ...