Psalm 91 (NLT)

1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
he is my God, and I trust him.
3 For he will rescue you from every trap
and protect you from deadly disease.
4 He will cover you with his feathers.
He will shelter you with his wings.
His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
5 Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
nor the arrow that flies in the day.
6 Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
7 Though a thousand fall at your side,
though ten thousand are dying around you,
these evils will not touch you.
8 Just open your eyes,
and see how the wicked are punished.
9 If you make the Lord your refuge,
if you make the Most High your shelter,
10 no evil will conquer you;
no plague will come near your home.
11 For he will order his angels
to protect you wherever you go.
12 They will hold you up with their hands
so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
13 You will trample upon lions and cobras;
you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!
14 The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me.
I will protect those who trust in my name.
15 When they call on me, I will answer;
I will be with them in trouble.
I will rescue and honor them.
16 I will reward them with a long life
and give them my salvation.”

Who ya gonna call?

“But whoever has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?” 1 John 3: 17

There are earworms and saddle burrs that I can’t shake this week.  Both of them are a result of things that our friends from Servants Inc shared with us – little bits of information heading into our upcoming DAY OF ACTION.

The first unshakable is that Servants is a 100% pass through charity.  Many of you may have already known that – but honestly – it impressed the heck out of me!  What that means is that if you donate $100 to Home Helps (Servant’s local based ministry) – $100 ENTIRE dollars go directly to help your neighbors in need.  Little dollars don’t get directed to advertising on billboards…..ten dollars don’t go marching off towards a contest to get more donors…..ONE HUNDRED TOTAL dollars go DIRECTLY to help someone who is taking a cold shower with a garden hose.

“One who is gracious to a poor man lends to the Lord and He will repay him for his good deed.” Proverbs 19:17

Which brings me to the next thing that has been rubbing me the wrong way – like the proverbial burr under my saddle – how can we possibly allow such need to exist right in our own back yard?  What struck me the most was when Chris Gohn said that the homeowners that we will be serving have no where else to turn.  They have tried making repairs on their own, they have asked for help from government organizations, they have turned to friends and neighbors …….and Home Helps – is their last desperate call.

Cue the sound track from Ghost Busters……the earworm that has been plaquing me all week…..Gang, I want to be the FIRST place where people in need turn.  I want them to remember things that actionchurch has done in the community and I want them to pick up the phone and dial 1-800-ACTIONCHURCH. That’s what the Christ followers did. That’s what the early church was. They were a group of dedicated, compassionate individuals who banded together to help one another.  It’s time that the church – that we as individuals – start to rise up and actively seek to aid those who are less fortunate.

If we continue to be THAT church – the one that gives, and gives and gives.  The church that goes out of their way to help a neighbor….in the end – the people that we serve will come to realize that it isn’t actionchurch that is their savior.  They will come to understand that there is a true savior – someone who was willing to sacrifice not just a sweaty, hot, dusty Friday to help them get their shower fixed – but someone who was willing to give their life for them to spend an eternity in heaven.

So – this week – let’s be THAT church.  Be the people I know who can pack the lobby with so much paint, hammers and nails, plywood, drywood, lumber wood, Gatorade and water that we will need a moving van to get it all delivered.  If you want to know the greatest need for Home Helps, call Steve Fowler ( he is the crew leader for Home Helps 717-378-0336 ) and ask him what they need.

Then head out to Home Depot – grab a shopping cart – dance down the aisle to the Ghost Busters theme – and load up for Home Helps!

“And look out for one another’s interest, not just for your own. The attitude you should have is the one that Christ Jesus had.” Philippians  2:4-5

OK (to be not OK)

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“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13

One of my go to girls asked me the other week how I was doing. I told her that I felt like a Japanese anime cartoon who was being bled of color…..turning black and white around the edges. I was feeling leached; like someone had stuck me with a needle and drained all the color out of my life. So – call me dramatic, but in my flair for big, bold adjectives and descriptions – the word I was searching for was …..WEARY.

She wanted to pray for me and I knew it. I trusted her, as a close friend, with what was on my heart. Too often, as humans – especially in this age of independence – we erroneously equate weariness with weakness. I was not weak. I was weary. Bone weary. Weary to the core. Just plain drained.

I was overburdened with work and paperwork and housework. The kid’s practices, school, discipline, events….and well – just having kids was wearing me down. Doctor appointments, schedules, medical issues, finances, family – you name it – I was juggling it.

But I remember this clearly…..in her own special way she encouraged me. She simply smiled. She has this little secret smile that said she knew everything was going to be okay. I don’t think she was cocky that her intercessory prayer would be heard, but rather she knew that in simply saying those words – “I’m not okay” – I was more than 90% of the way to where I needed to be.

Psalm 116:10 says something subtle, but very important to those of us who are weary. It says

“I trusted the Lord when I said ‘I am greatly afflicted’ “.

Being weary as a Christian is NOT the same as being weak. Being able to say – “Hey, God – I’m not OKAY!” is a matter of trust. When we admit that we need God’s comfort it means we have faith that he is going to give us what we need.

God wants us to admit our weariness. He wants us to need him. He wants nothing more than to comfort and cradle us in our most weary, overburdened, stressed moments. He dearly wants to give us rest. Isn’t it amazing that we have a protector who loves us just as we are? He will hear us – and still love us – when we say “I’m NOT okay.”

Resilience Finale this Sunday!

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Every Sunday this month we’ve been learning the art of Resilience from scripture…and life.   One thing is sure, resilient people can take a punch…and get back up!   However, as great as it is to be able to TAKE a punch, wouldn’t it be even better to be able to BLOCK a punch…or even AVOID a punch altogether occasionally???   Jesus promised that “in this world we would have trouble”, but is it possible to get ANY better at dealing with difficult times than just reacting to them after they happen?   This week we’ll finish with an amazing bit of wisdom from King Solomon-

24 You can go to bed without fear;
you will lie down and sleep soundly.
25 You need not be afraid of sudden disaster
or the destruction that comes upon the wicked,
26 for the Lord is your security.
He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap. -King Solomon

(Proverbs 3:24-26) 

Find out HOW at 10:30 am this Sunday!

Directions

 

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“If God is all-powerful then why does he allow suffering?”

BAMM! It’s one of those questions that your teen throws at you when he doesn’t want to go to church. POW! Christians cringe when they hear it and immediately go on the defensive. SPLAT! It’s the question that probably keeps a lot of non-Christians from committing to a life of faith. Frankly, it’s a GREAT question…..and the answer is – I don’t know.

I don’t know why God allows (not causes) suffering and pain.

Maybe – God allows suffering in order to create an amazing testimony. Like the Rhonda Rousey clip we saw on Sunday…..when a celebrity who we look up to admits pain that we can identify with – it helps hundreds of people to heal. Or, maybe something horribly heinous happens – like kamikaze suicide pilots attacking the United States on 9/11 – terrible death, destruction and chaos ensued. But – the result was that thousands of people started praying, churches filled to capacity and neighbors actually started helping neighbors again.

Or maybe – the suffering and pain that God allows in our lives is meant to change us. Personally.

When I look back at the tribulations in my life that have been the hardest, those struggles that have caused the most pain, when the heartache was so unbearable I wished I would die – that suffering that God allowed – changed me. Personally.

The pain brought me to my knees in prayer. The grief devastated me so badly – that only God could heal me. The turmoil that destroyed my own little world forced me to admit that I needed God in my life. I truly believe that God loves us so much that he would do or allow anything that would cause us to turn to him.

You see -when we give our burdens and suffering and heartache to God – he gives only love in return. And then, something incredible happens ….. the pain turns to peace.

“My soul finds rest in God alone. My salvation comes from him.” Psalm 82:1

In the pain and in the sorrow and in the suffering my all-powerful God is waiting with open arms to hold me and comfort me and assure me of an everlasting relationship.

He is waiting for you, too.