God gives in the Word of God, the greatest judgment when he says in verse 31c; “their own way have I recompensed upon their heads…” This is when God withdraws His Presence, His power, and His leading from us. He is giving us what we want, and that is to live as we want, to live without the commitment of service.

How many times have we read this verse and thought we need more great preachers, more evangelists or more missionaries! Have we ever looked at ourselves to see how we could be the one God is looking for to stand in the gap: to be a part of that hedge?

Christian Life, Christian Service, Encouragement, Faith, God's Will, Trusting GodAmy SappJanuary 11, 2021Purpose, Place, Plan, Gap, Searching, Courage

Your Ways Are Higher Than Mine - Anita Kelly

I am sure if we made a list of the "lows" of 2020, our lists would resemble (a pandemic, turmoil in our country, the election, so many deaths, church loss, etc), but at the same time we would each have our own additions that would differ from anyone else's list ( loneliness, fear, discouragement, personal loss, financial loss, etc.). These would include hard and difficult times that only WE experienced. As our hearts cried out to Him, it seemed at times like God just disappeared (though in our hearts we knew that He didn't). In my case, I truly believe God answered my prayer for that "20/20 Vision in 2020".

Christian Life, Christian Service, God's Will, Trusting GodAmy SappJanuary 4, 2021Your Ways, 2020, 2021, Vision, 20/20 Vision, Circumstances

God's Grace - Debbie Isaacs

The story I’m about to tell is a true story. I pray it will affect your heart and teach us about the WILL of God. In June 1977 a baby boy was born into our household and we named him Jeremy. He was a big buster of a baby dearly loved and wanted. 1978 another baby boy was born in Iowa who was also loved and wanted named Kyle. In the process of time these young men grew up and each decided to go to a Bible college in Pensacola, Florida and became roommates and the dearest of friends.

Christian Life, Christian Service, God's Will, Illness, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappDecember 28, 2020Grace, Process, Affects, Missions, Cancer, Friends, Will of God

Fret Not - Misty Humble

2020 has been quite a year! We have seen fear quickly spread across the whole world causing churches, businesses , and schools to shut their doors. Cancellations of weddings, graduations, parties, vacations, family gatherings, funerals, and sporting events have become the “new normal.” Mandates, masks, gloves, sanitizing, and social distancing are overwhelming. Then throw into the mix savage fires, deadly hurricanes, mass rioting, and destruction of cities, statues, properties, and lives. Racial tension has soared. Political differences have been magnified. National dissension and unrest has accelerated. Fear and terror have swept the nation with a vengeance.

Anxiety, Christian Life, God's Will, Life Changes, Love of God, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappDecember 21, 2020Fret, Fretting, 2020, World, Fear, Tragedy, Cancellations, unrest

Not Perfect, but Transformed! - Terri Howe

It started out as a fairly small project, we were going to replace our countertops, paint, and replace the flooring and we were going to do the work ourselves with some help from others where needed. The more we looked around and talked about what different rooms needed, our list of improvements began to grow! We found a contractor that said he could do the work and began our three-week project!

Give the Gift that Counts: A Labor of Love - Jo Beth Hooker

I Corinthians13:13 says, And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity. I love that verse! There is so much in this one verse. For example, the word charity is a term that means benevolent love. It is a term used to describe sacrificial love. God never does anything by accident, so it is no accident that He chose to use the word charity. Many modern versions of the Bible have opted to translate the word simply to love, but the word love does not mean the same thing as charity. The word love has many definitions; it can mean many things to many people and not necessarily does it mean sacrifice. I believe God uses the term charity because it implies giving without expecting anything in return. If I give something to Goodwill or to Amvets, I don’t want it to show back up on my doorstep. I’m giving it away. I don’t want it to come back. According to I Corinthians 13, this is the way true love is to be given-freely, with no expectation of return- but given because true joy, peace and happiness is found in what we give, not what we get.

Christian Service, Christian Life, Faith, Love of GodAmy SappDecember 7, 2020Gift, Giving, Jesus, Labor, Love

No Matter What - Hannah Hon

Having a thankful and grateful demeanor is not always an easy thing to maintain, especially in 2020 😊 . While we have many things to be thankful for, we are constantly reminded by the world of all we are “missing”. We begin to focus on the material and temporal, and our immediate needs come to live at the forefront of our minds and hearts. This begins to strip us of our grateful spirit and the peace that comes from giving thanks. But lets be honest, the circumstances we often face are not always easy for our human hearts to find the good in, are they? Finding the parts to complain about is much easier, and friends may even seem to listen more intently when we are going through tragedy. However, if we are not careful, we will find that going to that friend, or creating that social media post with all our woes and heartaches,(serious though they may be), becomes our first line of defense over stopping to take anything to our Savior.

Contentment with Gratitude / Chrissy Hon

How many times have you reminded your children to say “thank you” all the while thinking that it didn’t seem to have any effect on how they really were thankful for what they were “expressing” gratitude for?

Christian Life, Christian Service, Friendship, Love of GodAmy SappNovember 23, 2020Content, Contentment, Gratitude, Thankfulness, Thankful

Let Go and Let God - Mindy Holeman

There are times in our lives when God purposely sends us trials that will ultimately change our lives and the way we think forever. These trials are not sent to be malicious but rather to grow our faith and increase our influence for Him.

Faith, God's Will, Life Changes, Peace of God, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappNovember 16, 2020Trials, Fires, Oregon, Struggles, Trust, Home

Run YOUR Race - Tenille Hoffert

My husband ran a 50 mile race! Yes, you read that correctly. 50 mile trail race. Who in their right mind runs 50 miles? But that wasn’t enough for him. You see, there are these races that are 100 miles long. Seriously. Why? I’m really not sure, but he set his mind to it and signed up for one. Let’s be real… I was not (and am not) running 100 miles. That race was not for me! But do you know what was for me? Helping him. I could encourage him. I could support him. I could go on training runs with him, I could make sure he had all the tools he needed… Shoes, socks, clean running clothes, food, water, electrolytes, salt tablets… I could pray for him. And for months that is what I did. I was training for my races and he was training for his.

Christian Life, Christian Service, Encouragement, Faith, God's Will, marriageAmy SappNovember 9, 2020Run, Running, Race, Trials, Marriage

Thankful Even in the Storm - Jen McMillan

I spent many days pouring out my heart to the Lord. We took the leap of faith to enter this adoption plan and I was hoping the understanding would come as to why he said no. Now I can look back at that storm and see how the Lord grew me. How He used this hard time to show me it was Him that I really needed, not that baby boy. He could be my joy, my comfort, and my strength. It changed my view to asking God what He is wanting to do through me instead of why He is doing this to me.

Faith, God's Will, Love of God, Peace of God, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappNovember 2, 2020Adoption, Trials, Trusting, Faith, Love, Thankful

Surviving and Thriving - Heather Higgins

Do you ever feel like you are just merely “surviving”? Have you ever heard of the statement “survival of the fittest”? Although I am well aware of the statements origin, and I am in complete dis-agreement with the thought process behind its meaning, the statement has always intrigued me. Years ago I began taking the original meaning of the coined saying and have often used the expression but I added my own “twist” to it. I developed a spiritual application for myself.

Just Passing Through - Amy Herdman

If we have learned anything through this year, I hope we have learned to hold the things of this world very loosely. Our world is a mess, and it has seemed to spiral down so quickly this year alone. We need to learn to live with Heaven in view every single day. This is difficult with so many things screaming for our time, as ladies. The kids have outgrown their shoes. You know they need to go to the dentist. It is time to pay the school bill. The list is endless. The little (less important) things clamor for our time. Our Bibles never scream, “Hey read me!” The dishes…yes! The dishes they scream, “Hey look at this mess.” I truly believe if we can train our minds and our thoughts to ask if this is going to matter in light of eternity, then we will major on the things that matter. Our hurt feelings, that rude comment…will it really matter? Can I overlook it? Maybe there are things we are chasing and spending more time on than we should. It is time for Christians to focus on Heaven. Focus on relationships and people. First, are they going to Heaven? Can I give them the Gospel? Can I mend a relationship? I mean, we are going to Heaven together if they are believers. Can I focus on my current ministry or maybe I need to jump into a ministry? I challenge you to take a minute to list your priorities in light of eternity. Heaven is real! We are headed there, my friend.

Glory in my Infirmities - Courtney Bartels

This verse is my life verse, but sometimes our own life verses are hard for us to declare. Last summer the Lord had me carry two precious babies for a very, very short time. I didn't understand why, and it was extremely hard. Shortly after the Lord blessed us once again with a precious baby. I was so scared, I even went to the ER thinking I was going to lose yet another baby. It turned out to be some complications from the previous miscarriages that went away on their own, praise the Lord. But the whole pregnancy I was so nervous. When the time came the Lord gave us our sweet baby girl, the delivery went well but she didn't seem right. She ended up being rushed to the NICU

Children, Faith, Love of God, Peace of God, Prayer, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappOctober 12, 2020Infirmities, Miscarriage, Babies, Promises, Love, Praying, Trials

Pearls for God - Dawn Hamm

God’s example of a pearl, just as the Church was formed from the redemptive act of Jesus at Calvary who bore our sins upon the cross, a pearl is formed out of suffering and it is only when we as “pearls” come to the end of ourselves that we can look up and see the beauty and love of a God who loves us and paid the ultimate price just to prove that love on Calvary. Pearls like people are a combination of things; it takes at least 3 materials to form a pearl; calcium, the irritant material, and the oyster’s saliva

Christian Life, Christian Service, Faith, God's Will, Love of God, Trusting GodAmy SappOctober 5, 2020Pearls, Love, Price, Struggles, Precious, Gem, Treasure, Material

Be a Good Steward - Maria Komisky

I've struggled with my weight my entire life! I can remember being overweight at the age of nine. I was teased at school for my weight and my lack of coordination. Throughout my teenage years and as an adult, I eased into a sedentary lifestyle. Combined with my love of food, my lack of physical activity caused my weight to balloon to just over 300 pounds at the age of thirty! My mother passed away at the age of 42 because of her lack of self care and not being a good steward of her temple. However, it still took me almost eleven years after her death to "see the light!"

Christian Life, Encouragement, Faith, Friendship, Life Changes, TrialsAmy SappSeptember 28, 2020Journey, Weight Loss, Steward, Thankful, Support, Encourgement

Word of Encouragement - Emily Queen

I think as women in general it is in our nature to give of ourselves in almost everything we do. We have a tendency to put everyone else’s needs before our own, especially in family life. If you are like me and chose a serving profession (nurse), then your job requires a lot of self-giving. So I give all day at work, then I get home and give the rest to my kids, and sometimes it is hard to have the motivation to fill myself back up again by spending time with the best Giver of all, my Heavenly Father.

Wanderer, Come... - Mistie Owens

Oh how I wish that was my life! I have wandered for much of it. Brokenly. Every repeat, reconciled moment with the Lord, I would rejoice in feeling close to Him, yet I would continue sojourning – spiritually never settling down, putting down roots with a home church, developing deep fellowships with other believers – and therefore never getting God's best for me. My growth was stunted, limited to solitary bible study and the occasional chat with a brother or sister in the faith, for much of my adult life. And I longed for the Lord, painfully so.

Your Pastor's Wife is Human! - Amy Sapp

Be faithful to all church services and soul-winning times, BE ON TIME, even be early, nothing shows love like being there! If you are a leader in your church, do better than average, there is a good chance that others will do a little less than what you do.

Hope - Heather Roloson

There’s an “expected end” to loneliness. I had a friend ask me a while ago if it bothered me that all my friends were dating and I was not. Being honest, sometimes there is that insecurity that says there won’t be an end to this season in my life. Then I remember I have a promise from God. Does that mean I will get married? Not necessarily. But the “thing that I long for”? The things that every human being longs for? Belonging and mattering? Oh yes, my friend, it’s coming. If not in my own family, then in the work that God is preparing me to do.