What do you do when you get discouraged? Do you run toward God or do you run the other way? Jesus never promised that life would be without disappointments or discouraging situations. Knowing that fact sometimes doesn’t make the pain any better.
 
I made a new friend this week. I went over to his house to visit with him because he is not going many places these days. He has good days and bad days. You don’t know what kind of a day it will be until you get to it. For you see, he has been diagnosed with cancer that has moved to his bones. The doctors have given him a few months to live. As I was visiting with him I couldn’t help but think of how devastating that was when he got the initial news. No one wants to hear that kind of news. We have seen many things of that nature at our church. It doesn’t make it any easier to try to go through this with families. Each time is just as hard as the other. The one thing I do notice is that the one who has been diagnosed has more peace than anyone else. A lot of times they are the ones trying to help others through the outcome of their diagnosis. They know they are headed for a city where there is total freedom and an eternity to experience the peace of God. That is the kind of grace and peace that I want in life no matter what the diagnosis or circumstance that I am in.
 
“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”  James 1:2-4 (NLT)
 
The word used in the New Living Translation concerning the results of the testing of your faith is steadfastness. Other translations use words like patience, endurance, fortitude, and perseverance. The Apostle Paul says in Romans 5:3 that enduring suffering produces perseverance. There is an unwavering firmness that is present when you run toward God instead run away from God. He calls us to endure to the end. Life can get difficult but know that God is greater than anything period. We are called to wait on the Lord. 
 
So as you are experiencing life, remember to “Wait patiently for the Lord; be strong and courageous. Wait patiently for the Lord” Psalm 27:14. As you wait for the Lord, He will give you what it is that you need to move through the mountain you are facing. So let me remind you that with God you can. Maybe you need to remind someone else of that simple fact today. 
 
On Sunday we are going to Hang Out with Giants. After looking at the life of David, I decided to pick out different giants in the faith from Hebrews 11 and look into their life. God put these beautiful stories in the Bible to help us to learn from the best or maybe even the worst. Whichever the case, it’s going to be good. Also I wanted to let everyone know that our Nazarene Youth Conference students and adults have safely arrived home in the early morning hours. It will be good to hear what the Lord has been doing in their lives. Thank you for those who prayed for each one by name.
 
Joy in Jesus!
 
Pastor Mike
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7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened."  Matthew 7:7-8
 
There is no clearer promise than this in the Word of God that prayer will literally bring results. According to James 4:2, many times we don’t receive because we don’t ask. Matthew 7:9-11 goes on to say, 9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”
 
There are a few things I would like for you to pray for. Pray for our Vacation Bible Adventure. Tonight will be our third night. Thursday night is the last night before we come back together on Sunday. Pray for strength and creativity for all of our leaders. There is excitement in the air as we all gather together. Part of the excitement is because our leaders are being used by God to pour into all the families who come into the church. This would not happen without our volunteers. Would you also pray for the children to hear the story of Jesus and what He has done for them? We are believing that this week will impact these children and change the course of their lives. Pray that some children will accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. 
 
Pray for our group of 17 who are in Phoenix, Arizona for Nazarene Youth Conference. They left the church at 1:45am this morning to travel to Columbus to fly to Phoenix. It is going to be a life transforming week if we commit to praying for them. Let me list the names of those who are attending:
 
Adults: Ben Stanhope, Samantha Stanhope, Tracy Stults.
Teens: Hayden Carr, Lindsey Fark, Rachel Fark, Ally Heldman, Drew Heldman, Rosaline Hertenstein, Lei Melick, Rheanna Patterson, Olivia Rook, Rebecca Rook, Sophia Ruiz, Alauna Stults, Avery Stults, Noah Williams.
 
This is a great group from our church. Pray for each of them for the next week and let’s anticipate hearing what the Lord has done in their lives. Pray for their safe return a week from today.
 
One more thing to pray for, pray for our services on Sunday. Following the second service we will be enjoying an indoor picnic and lots of activities outside for our VBA Sunday Funday. Everyone is invited to stay and get to know each other better. I think of it as an extended family reunion. It is always good to fellowship together and hear what God is doing in other people’s lives. Don’t forget to bring a couple dishes for our potluck following the second service which will be held in the Family Life Center. The first service will be in the Worship Center.
 
Matthew 7 does not sound like asking for something and getting something entirely different. It is getting what we ask for. As we pray within the framework of God’s will, we can be absolutely certain that we will get what we ask for. There are many lives that will be impacted in a powerful way. Let’s truly believe in the power of prayer.
 
Joy in Jesus!
 
Pastor Mike
 
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​Starting on Monday, July 8, our church will be buzzing with excitement as we begin this year’s Vacation Bible Adventure. The theme is Power Up. It is going to be a power packed week as our kids gear up for a great week full of adventure. Please pray for our families who will be attending during this week. There are many families from our church but there will also be families who do not have a church home. Especially pray that they will sense the love of Jesus this week and will feel the wooing of God to return each week to grow together to the maturity of Christ.

​Another exciting event is Nazarene Youth Conference that same week where we will have 14 teenagers attend this great conference. They will leave on Wednesday, July 10. Many teens in the past have made major life decisions on this trip by making Jesus the Lord of all of their life – past, present, and future. There are many who have even answered the call to full time ministry. Please remember our group who will be traveling to Phoenix, Arizona for this life changing event through July 16. Pastor Ben has been doing such a great job in connecting our teens to God and others. We are blessed to have him leading the charge.
 
These kinds of events cannot happen without a lot of planning and preparation. Pastor Tracy has done an awesome job of pulling a team together to go over the top with our Vacation Bible Adventure each year. We are so blessed to have a church full of people who love God and love others as Jesus calls us to. I know that there are lots of things to do whether it is behind the scenes or on the front lines. If you are able to help, then plan on attending a VBA meeting following the second service on Sunday. Most of all, pray. Pray for the Lord to move in a powerful way this week. We love to have fun with the kids but we love, more than anything, to see children and families come and meet Jesus and then walk in relationship with Him. 
 
Summer is always a time of changing up the rhythm of our daily routines. This summer is no exception. Please be in prayer for the different events that are happening and continue to be the loving people God has called us to be. Thank you for serving the Lord with the passion He has given us.
 
May God richly bless you as you seek Him wherever He may be found.
 
Joy in Jesus!
 
Pastor Mike

For many early Christians, the idea that Jesus came in the flesh was a hard pill to swallow. Many in the Roman world believed that everything physical or material was bad, that the goal of salvation was to escape this world. They thought the goal was to escape the physical and become a spirit. John took on the challenge of confronting that ungodly thought of his day. He writes,
 
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our joy complete.  1 John 1:1-4
 
John the evangelist wrote both the Gospel of John and the 3 Epistles of John known as 1, 2, and 3 John. You will see a similarity in the first part of the Gospel of John as he talks about the incarnate Jesus which means that He came in the flesh. 
 
In one sense, if the physical world’s only foundation comes from itself, then the early Christians would be right in the fact that it was not so good. But when the spiritual is in control of the physical then it can be controlled by the mystery of God. John wants to bring fellowship with man and God to the forefront. We are to constantly be growing closer to God and with others. The Christian message can be summed up with the greatest commandment, Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, then to love your neighbor as yourself. This will truly bring your joy to completeness. It is through the physical that Jesus impacts this lost world.
 
May God remind you that He loves you with a love so much that He came down to this earth and became a part of the physical world to show us how to love Him more and save us from sin. What a God we serve.
 
Thinking on this makes for a great day…
 
Joy in Jesus!
 
Pastor Mike

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We have been looking at God’s revelation to man as He speaks in the skies, as He speaks Scriptures, and now as He speaks in the soul.
 
He Speaks in the Soul (19:12-14)
12 But who can discern their own errors? Forgive my hidden faults. 13 Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression. 14 May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
 
Jeremiah 17:9 says, The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
Basically it is saying that we can’t even understand our own heart. We need the mirror of the Word to reveal it to us. The Psalmist goes as far as to ask the Lord to reveal his secret sins (Psalm 139:23-24).
 
As I have been reading through the Old Testament, I thought it was interesting that the Old Testament law provided for sins of ignorance but for sins of open rebellion and defiance there was no sacrifice (Numbers 15). Here David asks not only to be cleansed of secret faults but to be restrained from running into deliberate sin. David knew how deliberate sin could shackle his every thought of walking in freedom from fear and debilitating sin. In Romans 6, the Apostle Paul says that sin should have no dominion over us.
 
Could it be that David is telling us that it is an accumulation over time of the small hidden faults that are unbridled that could potentially lead to a willful, deliberate sin against God? It is so good to humble ourselves before God and give Him my all. 
 
I think that verse 14 ought to be our prayer before our feet hit the ground in the morning. “May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer” Psalm 19:14. The word “meditation” here has the image of a musician plucking the strings of a harp. Who controls the music of your heart, God or Satan? Meditation is to the heart what digestion is to the body; it is the taking in of the Word of God and making it a part of the inner being. As the heart and mind think on the Word all day long, the Spirit guides the life. That is why I always talk about saturating in the Word of God. It is what we dwell on that will begin to permeate in our heart and mind.
 
I think of the Parable found in Mark 7 where Jesus says it is not the outside that makes a man unclean, it is what is coming from the inside.
 
This Sunday I will finish up the series, “Decluttering Our Past.” Many have been running from things of their past and the Lord is calling us to embrace them and fully commit it to Him. If we don’t thoroughly give it to Jesus then we take a chance of repeating something that God wanted to grow us through.
 
Make Psalm 19:14 your prayer each day as you strive to be more like Jesus…
 
“May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer”  Psalm 19:14.
 
Joy in Jesus!
 
Pastor Mike

I have been watching a video of the 50th anniversary of our church. It was held in September of 1990. A video recorder was set up and taped by Art Hunsberger as they had a potluck (of all things) and a service celebrating all the past pastors and ministries of the church. Some things never change. I saw many of our people who still attend to this day and many who have passed on. Everyone was 30 years younger. It was good to do the math and figure out the age of people at the time. There were lots of stories and fun moments to celebrate. 
 
What a great heritage this church has had. Many will not remember the people of our past but we definitely feel the effects of their sacrifice and love for God’s church. I think of the verse found in 2 Timothy 4:7-8, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
 
We all give and serve as unto the Lord. Every life we touch, every ministry we serve in, every class we teach, it is all for the glory of God. We should be grateful for the people who served in our past and keep the story of faith alive by recalling the wonderful things the Lord has done throughout the years. I have said it several times, but I am thankful for a church who loves all families and I can say for me, who loves my children and has given them a great church experience.
 
It reminds me of a song by Casting Crowns entitled, “Only Jesus.”
 
Make it count, leave a mark, build a name for yourself 
Dream your dreams, chase your heart, above all else
Make a name the world remembers
But all an empty world can sell is empty dreams
I got lost in the light when it was up to me
To make a name the world remembers
But Jesus is the only name to remember
 
Chorus
And I, I don’t want to leave a legacy
I don’t care if they remember me
Only Jesus
And I, I’ve only got one life to live
I’ll let every second point to Him
Only Jesus
 
All the kingdoms built, all the trophies won
Will crumble into dust when it’s said and done
'Cause all that really mattered
Did I live the truth to the ones I love?
Was my life the proof that there is only One
Whose name will last forever?
 
I purposely did not mention names because we are all about leaving a legacy of Jesus and not ourselves. All the trophies will crumble but all that really matters is the truth that we lived out. Was my life a proof that there is only One God and did I show that He was irresistible?
 
It doesn’t stop me from thanking the Lord for specific individuals who got out of the way and let God minister through them. There is a long list of people from our past and today that have impacted many people by their selfless ministry. I want to someday be able to say along with Timothy that I have fought the good fight and have kept the faith through it all. Oh, and by the way, thank you for how you love God with all of your heart and serve Him without abandon.
 
This Sunday we will celebrate our graduates as they get ready to start a new chapter in their lives. We are going to celebrate 8 High School graduates and around 9 College graduates. What a great group of young people. Each one will receive a gift from our church and be reminded that God loves them and cares for their direction in life. I look forward to worshipping with you on Sunday.
 
Joy in Jesus!
 
Pastor Mike

Last Sunday we announced a campaign that will go through July. We have been updating our Family Life Center and celebrating all the ministry that has happened over the past 21 years. Can you imagine with me how many lives have been impacted over these past 21 years? There have been multiple Upward Basketball games, youth and children events, crusades, dinners, services, not to mention all the parties for families of every age. We have been blessed to be able to use this facility for the building up of souls. I think of the verse in Matthew 25:40, “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’” Sometimes the biggest impact is in the smallest gesture and not the biggest event.
 
For the next few months we are going to be giving toward our Family Life Center in order to complete the whole project. The goal is to collect $54,000 through the month of July. If just 54 families would give $1,000 then we could move past the green carpet and put a gym floor down that will withstand the spills. Some may be able to do a little more or a little less. Whatever the case, let’s work together. We’ve often said that the stains on the floor is a reminder that we use the building for many events. I don’t know about you but some of those stains would be good to see go. By the way, if you are partial to one of them then we could make sure we set it aside for you. Ok, maybe not.
 
Do what you can and help us reach our goal as we pray for an open door to see another 20 plus years of ministry to families.
 
What a great day on Sunday as we celebrated the many babies in our church through Baby Day. To think that we were able to dedicate 8 and be blessed with 5 more new births through the month of September. Thank you for being the type of church that supports our families and their ministry to their children. I know that Vickie and I have been so grateful over the years to raise our children in this great church.
 
I look forward to worshipping with you on Sunday as we honor the members who have passed away this past church year, and continue the series, “What We Need from the Cradle to the Grave.”
 
Joy in Jesus!
 
Pastor Mike
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And He (Jesus) answered and said, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become on flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate” Matthew 19:4-6.
 
Graduation is in the air. For the next several weeks our local High Schools will be graduating seniors who are ready to move to the next chapter. There will be many parents with mixed emotions, sitting in the audience, watching what their grown children walk down the aisle before they move into adulthood. It is a necessary day but it is also a reminder that time is moving by fast.
 
Many couples choose to get married during this season of the year. According to the Bible, it’s a big deal. Genesis talks about it being between a man a woman, and Revelation closes with a wedding between a groom and a bride. There is no way around it, this ceremony of the two becoming one is the foundation of the family God intended from the very beginning. Neither the male nor the female can fully represent all there is about the image of God. We may be created by God and are individual, but we express the fullest image of God when the two halves of humanity complement each other and become one.
 
This is significant to look at – especially in our world of gender equality to the point of losing our identity as male and female. Bear with me for a moment.
 
In Genesis 2:18, it states that it is not good for man to be alone. We naturally think that God created male and then He needed to create female to complete the two. Yes and no. When you go directly from the Hebrew, it says, “It is not good from humankind to be at one.” In other words God was saying it is not good for humankind to live in solitude. When adam, or humankind was split apart, we ended up with male and female. I know what you are thinking, “What about the rib?” Good question. The word rib does not appear in the ancient Hebrew text. The word that is there is tsela. It is translated half or side. Don’t miss the significance of this next sentence. Instead of God creating Adam and taking his rib to create Eve, the text says that God created humankind, observed that it was not good for humankind to be alone, so God took a side or half of humankind and created a female (Eve). What remained was male (Adam). In other words, the whole (humanity) that was created in the full image of God (with both the strength of masculinity and the tenderness of femininity) is now the two complimentary halves of humanity: male and female.
 
One of the reasons for the strong sexual attraction of males and females to each other is the desire for the two halves of humanity to come back together (undoing the splitting of the adam) and reuniting male and females as halves to make the whole, now reflecting the full image of God. That is why the enemy of our soul is attacking this culture with confusion on this matter. If satan can erase the fingerprint and image of God from our foundation, then he will erase the burden of proof and have people believe in partial truths. Jesus said in Matthew 19:6, “So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together let no one separate.” If that were said today it would say, “What I have defined, let no Supreme Court ever redefine!”
 
Let’s not forget the ultimate Marriage found in Revelation. Remember, God did not borrow the imagery of groom and bride from marriage. It is actually the opposite. The real Marriage is the one at the culmination of history, the Marriage of the Groom (Jesus) and the Bride (the Church). It takes place at the end of time as we know it. With earthly marriage we are only getting the appetizer before the main course. Earthly marriage is only a glimpse of the true Marriage. I don’t know if we can fully grasp it all. Paul states that it is a profound mystery in Ephesians 5.
 
So the next time you are at a wedding, think of the image of God expressed in the male and female coming together in this covenantal relationship called marriage. It is a ceremony celebrating a glimpse of the image of God. It matters to God and thus should matter to us. Looking forward to the reception…
 
Enjoy the beautiful day today as we see the season transition to something we can be out in.
 
 
Joy in Jesus!
 
Pastor Mike