Return, faithless Israel, declares the Lord. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, declares the Lord; I will not be angry forever. Only acknowledge your guilt, that you rebelled against the Lord your God and scattered your favors among foreigners under every green tree, and that you have not obeyed my voice, declares the Lord. Jeremiah 3:12-13 (ESV)

Admitting we have messed up can be a hard thing to do. We usually don't admit we messed up or sinned unless we get caught. It might be that we are ashamed of what we did and believe others will look down on us; and often, the sin we are struggling with is something we have looked down on others for. Maybe we are afraid the person we sinned against will never forgive us for what we have done. These are all valid and real emotions that race through our minds after we have sinned and try to figure out how to get back on track with God. We are called to confess our sins and pray for each other even though it won't be easy (James 5:16). But, we should never have a hard time confessing our sins before God.

All of these fears and doubts we harbor concerning what others will think should not cross our mind when it comes to God. In today's text, he called Jeremiah to bring Israel to repentance through admitting their sin. God has called them faithless, whorish even, and much more. But, he still desires for them to return to him because of his great love and mercy for his people. Christ has paid the penalty for our sins, and there is now no more condemnation for those in Him (Romans 8:1). Cry out to a merciful God and admit the sin in your life, knowing that he won't judge or look down on you as fallen man does, but will respond in grace as we are counted righteous through Christ.

P Ray

Romans 12:1-2  -  Genesis 1:26-27

To the Ladies out there… you are wonderfully and beautifully made (Psalm 139:14).  Don't let the world tell you differently.  A good man looks not at the outward appearance, but who you really are inside and out.  You are like a rose.  Roses come in a variety of sizes, shapes, colors, yet they are beautiful.  A beautiful flower that is delicate has a wonderful fragrance and needs to be loved and cherished.  If you are not being treated like a delicate flower, talk to someone, especially if you are in a rough situation.

On a side note, roses also have thorns.  They are there for protection.  However, you shouldn't use those thorns to hurt others.  You are powerful, just the like the thorns of a rose stem, but don't abuse that power.

And, finally, a rose blossoms when attached to the bush.  Don't forget to get nourishment from God's Word, a good church and even the people you hang out with.  A rose cut off from the bush will eventually die.  Stay connected.

To the Men… often a soft, tender-hearted man is considered a cupcake.  Sometimes, even Christian men are called that as being too soft and weak.  But I want to encourage you that you were made in the image of God and are not, as the world might say, a cupcake.  We are called to love all people and be kind to others.  That doesn't mean we are weak or soft.  What is a ‘real' man?  Some define it by their job, stuff, muscles, etc.  What if we defined it by how we love others?  Not always in our nature to be kind and compassionate, but we need to do it.

Also, don't go after cupcakes!  What do I mean?  Well, the world tells us to check out other women or look at them as objects.  That is not what God's Word tells us to do.  Women are to be respected. They were created in the image of God as well.  So don't just look at the external beauty of people, but look at the inside.  Just as a cupcake is tempting, it only lasts a while and is not good for us.  If you are struggling with this, talk to someone ASAP!

God Bless,

PB

There is a fine line between confidence and arrogance.  This seems to play out a lot in sports.  To be a D-1 or pro-player, you have to believe in your abilities.  You have to be confident that you can get the job done.  There seem to be players that go beyond confidence to arrogance.  Those type of players annoy me.  Yes, they are good and have worked hard.  But the attitude I can do without.

This comes up in the Bible – Romans 12:3 says to not look at yourself more highly than you are, but rather with sober judgement.

However, look at 2 Corinthians 10.  Paul is being accused of being boastful (arrogant) in his letters, but timid in person.  But he shares that his confidence is in The Lord. His boasting isn’t to be about himself, but about God and what He has done.

I am challenged in two ways this morning…

1) Put more confidence in The Lord. I need to Trust Him fully. I can be arrogant about Him (not about me).

2) I need to be confident in how God has made me and who I am.  He loves us just the way we are.  But make sure that we RELY on God and give Him the praise.

PB

Sept. of 1990, was a pretty exciting month for me.  I was just starting into another year of college, playing soccer and trying hard to focus on my studies. I say trying because I was distracted.  The bug that gets people bit me real good. The summer before I went back to college that year, I met a sweet girl named Jen.  It's a good thing that I was a “College guy” cause she was way out of my league.

So back to college.  We had what they called “Fall break”.  The problem was since I was on the college soccer team I couldn't go home for break because we had a game scheduled.  For a lovesick guy—this wasn't good.  I made a decision to not go to my game, and drive home 18hrs, to spend a few days with my love.  After I came back to college, my coach would not play me for a couple games, but it was worth it and I would do it all over again.

I really like and recommend the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan.  One of the chapters talks about “When you're in Love”.  When you are in love, it changes everything.  You act different, look at life different, and even become someone new.  I'm sure that you have stories like the one I shared above.  Times when you were so in love, that you did crazy things.  Would you drive 18 hrs to see someone for a couple days and then turn around and drive back 18hrs?  You bet you would.

Now what about God?  Love should change the way we approach God.  Instead of feeling like we are “suppose” to or “have” to, love changes it to we “Get” to.  You and I actually “Get” to have a close, intimate relationship with God!!!  The way to feel like you “get” to be close to God is by falling in love with Him. Developing your love of God will change your approach to Him.

No doubt you know that God loves you.  But do you find yourself still trying to do things to please Him?  Thankfully God's love is not dependent on our achievements, or none of us would stand.  Do you know, really know, that God loves you where you are at right now?  (Read that question again!)  So many people have trouble getting past the nagging feeling that they need to somehow pay God back for what He has given them.  What does the Word say about this?  (Rom 5:8)  “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

While we were STILL SINNERS!  Do you find yourself bound by rules, or do you live in the freedom of His Grace?  Live free today!

Be blessed,

Pastor Ray

Do you know who Warren Buffett is?

He owns the investment firm of Birkshire Hathaway.  He's one of the richest men in the world (almost $60 billion dollars) and most influential and savvy investors of our time.

But here's the cool part for me.

There were four major class 1 railroad companies in the US with publicly traded stock – until Warren Buffett got interested in the profit potential of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad and bought 22% of its shares.  Then in 2009 he paid $34 billion for the rest of the railroad.  Imagine buying a business with 32,000 miles of track and 41,000 employees!  He didn't buy it to break it up and sell off the parts – he bought it because BNSF makes money!

Warren Buffet bought it all!

Jesus bought it all – our sins, dysfunctions, and failures.  Jesus made the ultimate investment, His life, not because He saw our potential (though He does, of course) but because His death and resurrection made it possible for every person to be reconciled (be put into right standing, viewed as righteous) with God!

If you want to know more about a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ, check out our website under the tab “searching?” or drop me an email.

Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe.

Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

Bought By Him, The Price Paid In Full,

Pastor Mark

Did you ever play the game ‘Kick-the-Can'?  In my neighborhood, we loved that game.  If you don't know what it is, google it!  Basically, it's hide and seek, but to call someone out (at least the way we played it), was the person that was it, ran to the can (which was in the center of the playing area) and said ‘1-2-3 on person x’.  And then the people caught could be set free if another hiding person kicked the can before the person that was it got them out.  It was quite a strategy game.  Anyways…

I never enjoyed being ‘it'.  Because you had to walk around to find the people hiding (we played in a huge yard and at night!), yet not be too far away from the can.  And as soon as you got several people caught, someone would come in and kick the can and set everyone free.

Matthew 6:33 – But seek 1^st His kingdom and righteousness

Matthew 7:7 – Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find…

Luke 18:1-6 – the parable of the persistent widow

Playing Hide-n-Seek with my kids, they don't like to ‘seek' for very long.  They give up quickly.  What if we took the message from Luke 18 and applied it to Matthew 6 & 7?  What if we kept seeking, kept asking and kept knocking?  What would God do?  I think in my life, I give up too often, just like my kids at hide-n-seek.  And often, like in kick-the-can, I am afraid to get too far away from the comfort of the light (or power of the can) to see where God wants to use me…or bless me.

I don't think that prayer is just about asking God for blessings or getting things.  He wants to communicate with us and lead us.  Too often we aren't ready to venture out into the darkness and see what He really wants for us.

Maybe He is calling you to reach out to a coworker?  Or encourage a missionary? Or sacrifice something so that you would have to rely on Him more.

Well, I am off.  Probably need to play another game of hide-and-seek with my kids (indoors of course!!!).

PB

 “What I am saying is that church attendance, Sunday morning services, sermon-listening (or even sermon preaching), song-singing, hand-clapping, amen-saying, and all of the things that “Christ-ians” have lifted up so high look so little like Christ himself that I am utterly convinced that we are completely off base with what discipleship means.” ~Shaun King

After reading articles like this one online–the prophetic gift in me is stirring up again.  http://www.churchleaders.com/pastors/pastor-how-to/154215-shaun_king_3_extemely_hard-earned_lessons_on_starting_something_new_change_and_discipleship.html

Shaun gives us a personal and brutally honest assessment of his life and ministry.  I respect a man like this…one who will ask himself the tough questions, and then acts on them whether it hurts or not.  If you dare, type in the web address and read what he has said.

What is our Core Vision?  Another way to say this is—“What are we about?”  If it's evangelism—then how are evangelizing?  If it's discipleship—then how are we making disciples?

Jesus went to the people…  Let me repeat that:  Jesus went TO the people.  He did not build a fancy church and then tell His followers to bring people into His building. ..So why is this the MAIN FOCUS of our church (bringing people to church)–when Jesus' focus was bringing people into His kingdom???

Here are some problems:

 1.  Our focus needs adjusted.  When was the last time YOU reached out with the message of LIFE to someone who is dying?

We usually take the easy way out and just invite people to church, thinking that is good enough…but is it?

Would Jesus invite someone to the Synagogue or would He share the Good News with them?

Would Jesus take a person to a priest to have them pray for them, or would HE intercede on their behalf?

2.  We want to bring people in so that someone ELSE can disciple them…

But the Bible commands ALL of us :

Mat. 28:19  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

We have a divine responsibility!  Understand this–that you and I carry the words of life.  Words that are precious and alive.  God wants to use us to go into the mission field that He has planted us in.

3.  God wants us to quit focusing on our building and start focusing on the world.  Is anyone ministering outside these church walls? Jesus says in Luke 5:31—Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.

God has opened doors for me to DO what I am encouraging you to do.  He has allowed me the privilege of leading people to the Lord. This is not something that I take lightly.  So I make it a commitment to disciple someone after I lead them to Christ.  God has also opened doors for me to counsel, visit and share the Gospel in way that I would not have imagined.  I have no doubt that He will do it for you if you ask and you are willing to go beyond yourself.

What I am asking you to consider today is to think about ministry –your ministry and the ministry of this church.  Like the quote said at the beginning of this article:  Does our ministry really look like Christ?  Are we reaching our world?  Are we sharing Jesus—the ONLY hope for the world?

Luke 4:18-19  “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

May God Bless You Today,

Pastor Ray

On the way to the office today it was -3 degrees.

That's 0 minus 3.

Cold. Freezing cold.

But look on the bright (if not warm side) side – if it was nice and warm in Ohio all winter, all the people moving from New York to Virginia or those who aspire to retire in Florida would come or stay here.  Property values would not just go up, they would skyrocket!  The Lima area is one of the most affordable places to live in the United States and that benefit would certainly change.

And it wouldn't just be retirement age people!  Soon young families would move to Ohio instead of the Phoenix or Altanta.  School taxes would go up and farm land would continue to disappear.

So I say – let it snow!

I like things just the way they are – even when it's cold!

Pastor Mark

I came across a video series by Andy Stanley the other day that really spoke to me.  Pastor Stanley talked about how the Old Testament is quite a story of God showing Israel a trust relationship.  God showed them that they could completely trust Him, even with the BIG stuff.  He didn't start with a list of rules or do's and don'ts.  He showed them His love and ability to save them.  They didn't always listen (neither do I).  The story continued in the New Testament, God showing how much He cares for people.  Again, He showered love and compassion on them and not another list of rules.

But in that relationship, there is a level of trust and respect for each party.  We decide to follow God and put our trust in Him because He cares for us and can take care of us.  So many people miss this aspect of Christianity…unfortunately.  They get hung up on the rules.  The thing is, is that the people of Israel wanted these regulations.  They wanted to know the rules so they could follow them perfectly.  Then the rules became more burdensome.  Finally, God came back to them and reminded them of the relationship that He wanted.

We trust other people more as they gain our trust. When they show themselves as a trustworthy source, then we begin to trust them with more.  (Check out the parable of the Ten Minas in Luke 19:11-27).

Has God proven faithful in your life?  How will you trust him more today?

PB

Some say that I like pain.  Others wonder why I torture myself again and again.  Many have prayed for me, but it has yet caused any change in me.  Why?  Why do I do this to myself year after year? Is there any hope for me?  …I'm a Cleveland Browns fan, and I can't help it.

I came home after service at church. I set my DVR to record the Browns game.  I know what you are thinking—“Why”.  All I can say is I like comedy!  When I turned the TV on, the Browns game was on the screen, and there was the score.  I paused the game and went up to the screen, just to make sure that I wasn't seeing things.  The Browns were winning 34-24.  You may question my credibility after reading this, but it's true. They were winning.

I clicked on the DVR to start the game over from the beginning.  But it's not the same watching a game when you know the outcome or score of the game before you see it. People used to call me and say—“Did you see the game?  They really played well and won 42-0.”  UGHHHHH!  I don't want to know the score.  It changes the way you watch a game. It's not as intense. You don't go through the ups and downs.  Mainly downs with the Browns!

As I was watching the Browns game, I noticed the coach getting upset.  God spoke to me at that moment.  God said he is upset because he does not know the outcome. If he did, he would not be worried.  The coach is fuming and stressing because he doesn't want to lose another game. I wanted to call the coaches headset and let him know it will be ok.  They will finally win today.

Spiritual application:  On the one hand God tells us who wins in the end.  God and those who believe in Him already won…

(Jn 16:33)  “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

We already won!!  On the other hand, God doesn't want us to live bored and non emotional about life. God was there in the beginning and has already seen the end.  He is in full control, and there is nothing I can do but Trust Him! Sometimes things will happen in our lives where we are not sure of the outcome or what God is doing. Just like in the football game.  There were times when the score was tied, times when Cleveland barely had the lead. Times when they were not sure of the outcome.  God doesn't show us the whole game of life on a video screen.  Because sometimes we would just coast on cruise control or if we knew some of the things that we will go through—we probably couldn't function.  God is calling us to live with Faith. Faith means that we believe we already won, and trust that whatever happens, we believe that God IS in control. So God wants us to get in the game. Live the game.  But most importantly—we have to have Faith in the Truth that God has ALREADY WON!!!

Promises from God's Word:

(Mat 16:18)  And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

(Rom 5:17)  For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.

(Joh 12:31)  Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out.

Praying that God increases our Faith TODAY!

Pastor Ray