Fall Creek Christian Church

"For the Lord sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes. The sins of a wicked man hold him captive; they are ropes that catch and hold him. He will die for lack of self control; he will be lost because of his incredible foolishness." Proverbs 5:22-23 While attempting to make the perfect cast, I heard an unusual buzzing sound coming from my reel. It was followed by a stumble producing yank as the lure failed to launch. I looked down to see that my line was in a terrible tangled mess. I had failed to exam my loop-filled reel before I reared back and attempted to cast the lure a country mile. My failure to examine my reel led to a massive snarl of line. There was nothing left to do but cut the line and start over. We're told in our verses for the day that nothing escapes God's examination. He makes 20-20 vision look like cement goggles. The good, the bad, and the ugly ... he sees it all. We don't. We do, however, tangle ourselves u...

“But don't be angry with yourselves that you did this to me, for God did it. He sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives." Genesis 45:5 As I walked away from one more difficult conversation, I began to really get discouraged and frustrated. "What is this all about?", I asked myself and God. My character was being attacked and my integrity questioned. I was confused and hurt and absolutely clueless as to what to do about it. The tunnel of perceived chaos is one, in which, God is powerfully at work. I couldn't see it at the time, but God was doing something in my life that required that tunnel. In our verse for the day, we find Joseph discovering this same truth in his life. He was, after 13 years of grief, able to see that his brother's mistreatment of him was actually the vehicle, in which, God carried him to fulfill his destiny. If not today, pain from mistreatment or pain from circumstances is headed your way. Someone is or will soon...

“But in all these things we have full victory through God who showed his love for us. Yes, I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor ruling spirits, nothing now, nothing in the future, no powers, nothing above us, nothing below us, nor anything else in the whole world will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:37-39 Oops, I did it again. No, I didn't rob a bank or run a red light. Just one more careless word, at a careless time, in a careless way. Sheepishly, I called my child to whom I spoke carelessly to ask for forgiveness. "Well dad, I forgot all about thought", she said. "I didn't. Would you forgive me?", I asked. "Yes dad. ... I love you." "I love you too sweetheart." She loves me anyway. I believe Paul, who wrote this proclamation of the insurmountable nature of God's love, on many occasions, sat in the stunned disbelief of God's love ...

“My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God." Proverbs 2:1-5 My youngest daughter has a chinchilla. It's an odd little creature that looks like a mouse, a squirrel, and a rabbit got their DNA all tangled up in a knot and out came well ... a chinchilla. It's a fun, not too stinky little animal that likes to run and literally bounce off the walls when it gets out of it's cage. It's evasiveness has given birth to a game we've affectionately named, "Chase the Chin!" Everyone, including the dog on occasion, has participated in the pursuit of this little speedster. If we had to pick one word to summarize our verses for the day, "pursu...

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth ... So God created people in his own image; God patterned them after himself; male and female he created them. God blessed them and told them, 'Multiply and fill the earth and subdue it. Be masters over the fish and birds and all the animals.'" Genesis 1:1,27-28 Each time the ball drops on a new year, the first thing I want to do is kiss my wife ... a long honored tradition at this point. It's kind of a "Wow, we made it!" Shortly after that, my thoughts begin to drift to the idea of possibilities. A new beginning. What could or should be a part of the newest chapter of this great adventure called life? New Year's Day stirs within us a powerful combination of dreams, hopes, potential and mystery. Our verses this morning draw us back to the first beginning, "the" beginning to be precise. God's creation in perfection, including those image carriers - men and women. Imagine ...

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23-24 The headlines of today sound more like an apocalyptic horror story than news. Accounts of senseless killings, missile launches, war, financial collapse, starvation, drug abuse, human trafficking and the like are sure to pour out of the anchorperson's mouth like a river at flood stage. Additionally, we also have all of our many personal stress points. Gut wrenching relational breakdowns, financial despair, unemployment, depression, addictions, foolish decisions, bitterness, injustice, and abuse are sure to headline some of our autobiographies. It doesn't take long for the anchor of anxiety to pull our broken hearts and troubled minds deep into the dark waters of despair. I don't know about you, but it makes me want to stand and shout, "Stop the world, I want off!!" As we read our ...

“Don't be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The devil will throw some of you into prison and put you to the test. You will be persecuted for 'ten days.' Remain faithful even when facing death, and I will give you the crown of life." Revelations 2:10 There was no way to describe the feeling that came over me when I finally received my diploma. Completed. Finished. Done. Over. No more papers, projects, or tests. Yippee!! What an incredible relief. It was day I had looked forward to for a long, long time. As we read our verse for the day, we discover in no uncertain terms that testing is not the exclusive domain of this world's educational system. It is also an integral part of God's spiritual educational system. Here we find Jesus telling the people in this church that the devil was going to be putting them to the test. Suffering. Persecution. Death. Talk about a final exam! I wonder what thoughts raced through their minds as they we...