| By Leigh Cron Baker |
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| Welcome to Killen UMC |
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| 211 J C Mauldin Hwy Killen, Alabama 35645 Email: mcintyrefamily@yahoo.com Office: 256 757-2148 Cell: 256 757-0704 |
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| Daily Wisdom |
| If a person gets into good physical shape or gets out of shape - it didn't just happen. We make choices that lead us to being physically fit or not. It's the same way with joy in our lives. We tend to think of joy as something that ebbs and flows depending on life's circumstances. But we don't just lose joy, as though one day we have it and the next it's gone. Joy is something that we have to choose and then work for. Like the ability to run for an hour, it doesn't come automatically. It needs cultivation.
When life gets painful or doesn't go as we hoped, it's ok if a little of our joy seeps away. The Bible teaches that true joy is formed in the midst of the difficult seasons of life. True joy doesn't depend on circumstances or environment; it is a gift that must be chosen and cultivated, a gift that ultimately comes from God. "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4 |
| How we live our days is...how we live our lives. We each need to discover for ourselves how to live this day in faithful surrender to God as we "continue to work out our salvation with fear and trembling" Phil. 2:12. We try to set our lives up so everything will be fine even if God doesn't come through. But true faith means holding nothing back. It means putting every hope in God's fidelity to His promises. (Crazy Love)
"I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread." Job 23:12 |
| "Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant, cutting off his right ear. Jesus commanded Peter, 'Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?'" John 8: 10-11
What was that cup in verse 11 that Jesus was talking about? It is God's will. He wants us to drink from that cup also. God has a plan and purpose customized for each of us and it is the cup He wants us to drink from. God gives us a cup that is His will but like a little child we will say "I don't like that!". We have to give up our wants, needs, and ideas, and follow Christ sometimes in blind faith - that is where most of us refuse to go. The cup that night for the disciples was going to bring mockery and humiliation. That can also happen with us, but Jesus wants us to take it without retaliation. By not drinking the cup, the disciples felt very justified and right in what they did. (1) They hurt people God didn't want them to hurt (the high priest's servant). We can become hard and aggressive toward people God doesn't want us to be side-tracked by. (2) The discipes tried to stop God's will (Peter ready to fight). We end up doing great harm and feel good about it. We feel justified not doing God's will because we have other plans we have to do first. (3) When we don't drink the cup of God's will and our plans fall through, we deny God (verse 17 Peter denied Christ even though a few verses before he was ready to fight and die for Him). When the bank account gets messed up and things don't go like we want, we get angry. How do we drink from the cup God gives us? By us giving up control of a situation. God told Peter to put his sword away. Give up your control of life. Peter had to give up his control to protect himself and how he wanted things to go and let Christ have that right. (sermon notes) |
| We never grow closer to God when we just live life; it takes deliberate pursuit and attentiveness....The world needs Christians who don't tolerate the complacency of their own lives. (Crazy Love) Wow and Ouch! |