Fall Creek Christian Church

"David continued to succeed in everything he did, for the Lord was with him. When Saul recognized this, he became even more afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David because he was so successful at leading his troops into battle." I Samuel 18:14-16 The other day I was attempting a car repair. One of my offspring had located a mailbox with the side view mirror of the car. Initial attempts to reattach said mirror were unsuccessful and a complete removal/replacement was needed. Nearly an hour into the project, the new mirror was solidly attached and shouts of joy ensued when the power button actually moved the mirror --- success!! Our verses today reveal that David was a very successful guy ... "in everything he did." He was a leader. He was an inspiration to warriors. Those he protected and served loved him. His enemy feared him. The secret to his success? "The Lord was with him." He was God's man following God's lead for God's glory. I...

"I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my spokesman to the world. ... for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you."  Jeremiah 1:5,7b  I've never said to myself, "Wouldn't it be great to be a press secretary or spokesman for a major political figure?" Honestly, what a terrible job! Everytime you stand up to speak, at least half of the people already hate you. Everyone is waiting to pounce on any poorly worded statement. Each word is dissected, twisted, misinterpreted, or taken out of context to fit the agenda of a particular reporter or editor. In addition to all the negativity, how would one even know if they were successful? It's just plain depressing. No wonder there's such a turnover in that job. Welcome to Jeremiah's world. He was God's spokesman to a people who had no interest in what God had to say. Most of his preaching and prophesies were...

"But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village in Judah.  Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past. ... And he will stand to lead his flock with the Lord's strength, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. ... And he will be the source of our peace."  Micah 5:2-5 After an outstanding man versus rusted lug nut battle, the deflated tire was removed - a small victory.  The now inflated spare tire was then mounted - a small task.  The panicked phone calls we were overhearing alerted us to the need for some money to purchase a badly needed new tire.  We gladly gave them some money - a small gift.  After which, the young mom broke into tears of gratitude.  The van was quiet as we drove away, each person pondering deep thoughts.  Thoughts like, "Wow, small matters." It must have made Micah smile as he wrote down these words of prophecy.  This little out of the limelight village that bar...

“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so God can heal you. When a believing person prays, great things happen." James 5:16 Great things? Wow, sign me up! I often feel like great things are for someone else. Finding the cure. Saving someone in danger. Solving the unsolvable. I did score the game winning goal in my sixth grade soccer championship game. It felt like a great thing at the time, but I'm not so sure it really qualifies as a genuinely great thing. I think James had a pretty good handle on both our desire to be a part of something great and our feeling that we haven't been. As it turns out, in order to be a part of something great, we need to both believe in and talk to someone who is great already. Who's greater than God? Through Jesus sins are forgiven, healing takes place, and great things roll down from heaven like thunder. Whenever God acts, it's a great thing because he's great. Wonder of wonders ... He i...

"Then he said to them, 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.  What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet forfeit his very self?  Luke 9:23-25 I keep this quote taped on my bookshelf: "Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at something that doesn't really matter."  It reminds me to ask myself some very important questions when making decisions and setting priorities.  Is this decision about God's Kingdom or is it about my little kingdom?  Do my priorities reflect Biblical values or do they reflect my personal preferences?  I often ponder how terrible it would be to come to the end of my days and then realize that my life didn't matter.  The older I get, the more acutely aware I become of the fact that my days are numbered.  I want them to count ...

"Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go ... for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:7,9b Whether we can readily articulate it or not, we all have a list of desires for our children. At times, this list can be too long, too demanding, too unrealistic, and in all honesty, too important. Many a child has been crushed under the weight of their parents' expectations. I've had to come face to face with some wrong-headed desires I've had for my children more often then I care to admit. On paper, the desires seem reasonable and even responsible. However, regardless of whether or not the problem is intrinsic to the desire or whether it's in the communication of said desire, the results are often times ... bad. Hurt feelings, mistrust, and questioned love are a few of the examples of bad resul...