Fall Creek Christian Church

"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us." II Corinthians 1:3-4 As we finished loading up the two older gentlemen, we made our way to the restaurant for lunch. Both men had been married for over 65 years. A year or so earlier, one of the men held his sweetheart's hand as she went home to heaven. Recently, the other gentlemen had to bid his farewell to the beautiful joy of his life as well. They spoke knowingly to each other recognizing their own emotions in the eyes of the other. It was a holy moment. Troubles come in all shapes and sizes. Jesus said that's the way it would it be. He also told us that he'd be there with us in the middle of each and every one. As Paul writes this letter, he reveals that God's comfort will accomp...

"Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart's desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun. Be still in the presence of the Lord and wait patiently for him to act. Don't worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes. Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper--it only leads to harm." Psalm 37:3-8  I stood at the tank mesmerized. The aquarium's display of jellyfish from around the world, illuminated with colored lights, absolutely captivated me. Living creatures suspended in the water weightless. Their movements, so graceful and effortless, were truly hypnotic. Everyone who walked into the room immediately grew still. My imagination sprung to life and the whirl of racing tho...

"I am saying this for your benefit, not to place restrictions on you. I want you to do whatever will help you serve the Lord best with as few distractions as possible." I Corinthians 7:35  As the day unfolded, my wife and my's carefully crafted plan began to unravel. We underestimated the time it would take to finish the first project on our to-do list. We were then intercepted on the way to the next by an urgent situation that we couldn't foresee and couldn't ignore. In our enthusiasm, we added one at the end of the day that wasn't on the list only to realize halfway through, we had missed a previously scheduled engagement. Ugh! Paul was acutely aware of our tendency to get distracted when he wrote this verse to the Corinthian church. He had just finished providing some strong coaching related to relationships and then told them the reason - "to do whatever will help you serve the Lord with as few distractions as possible." Paul was laser ...

 "My heart has heard you say, 'Come and talk with me.' And my heart responds, 'Lord, I am coming.'" Psalm 27:8 When I picked up my ringing phone, I saw my daughter's name on the caller ID. Most of our communication these days is through texts so I answered right away concerned something was amiss. It turned out my daddy senses were accurate. Big pothole, flat tire. After driving the 40 minutes to where she was and putting on the spare, I headed home feeling quite heroic. Nearly home, my phone rang again. Same daughter, even bigger pothole. In our verse for the day, the Psalmist is reflecting upon a call in his life. No phone was ringing. No loudspeaker was calling his name. It was a special word delivered straight to his heart. Specifically, it was a word of invitation. The Inviter? God Himself. The invitation? To talk. So, what do you do when God calls straight to your heart for a chat? The Psalmist didn't puzzle over the question very long at al...