In His Praise

In His Praise! Good News from East Point C.P. Church July 21, 2024 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall have eternal life. For God did not send his S0n into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17 John 3:16 is one of the most familiar verses in the Bible. It is probably one of the first verses that children or new Christians learn. It speaks of God’s love for us and gives us hope, peace and assurance. Verse 17 is just as important to remember, although it may not be quoted as often. These words again speak of God’s love and compassion for humankind. Jesus did not come…

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9  Human life on earth will not last forever, all people will spend eternity either in heaven or hell. Peter wrote about this in today’s verse. He is referring to the return of Jesus. Many evidently thought Jesus’ return was taking too long and some had begun to question it. Peter reminds them that God’s timetable is not the same as ours. God does not count minutes, hours or even years like we do. His ways are high above ours (paraphrased Isaiah 55:9) But Peter does give a reason for Jesus’ delay in returning to earth. It is because God is…

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name, …” Matthew 6:9 We strive to teach our children to pray, we try to be faithful in our prayer life and we encourage others to do the same. The Lord’s Prayer, found in Matthew 6 is one that many of us probably learned as children and have spoken its words often. We may be so familiar with it, that we speak the words without even thinking about their meaning. In this prayer, Jesus was teaching His disciples, and us, how to approach God and communicate with Him. In earlier verses in chapter 6, Jesus warns not to pray  to be noticed by others or not to keep “babbling on”. Instead He said to begin our prayers by praising God. We are to…

“And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14 The Biblical story of Esther is fascinating! In a nutshell, it tells how a young Jewish girl found herself in the court of King Xerxes and how his favor with her was used to protect the Jewish nation from being destroyed. Esther was faced with the decision to either speak up about an evil plot and risk being killed herself or stay quiet and see her family and friends destroyed. Her uncle spoke words of encouragement to her by reminding her that she may have been placed by God in this position just for the purpose of saving her people. Esther’s bravery, loyalty to her people and trust in God can…

Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” John 11:40 When Jesus’ good friend Lazarus was sick, his sisters, Mary and Martha sent for Jesus. They were confident that He would help them. Now Jesus could have just spoke a word and Lazarus would have been healed immediately or He could have rushed to Lazarus’ side and cast the sickness from his body. But Jesus did not do either one — He waited. He waited two days before He came to the home of His friends! When He arrived the first thing He learned was that Lazarus had already died. In fact He had been dead for four days and was already in the tomb. Jesus had compassion on…

“He who fears the Lord has a secure fortress, and for his children it will be a refuge.”  Proverbs 14:26 What a great verse this is for Father’s Day! All loving fathers want their children to be safe and feel secure. They want to protect them from harm, help them to be successful and give them a good foundation on which to stand.  Proverbs reminds fathers (and mothers) that we first must have our own secure relationship with God. We can have this when we give our hearts to the Lord, accept salvation and let God be in control. He is our Heavenly Father and He also desires that His children are safe, secure and have a firm foundation.  When parents set an example of Christian living in front of…

“I lift my eyes to the hills— Where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.  He will not let your foot slip— He who watches over you will not slumber;  indeed, he who watches over Israel  will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you— the Lord  is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm— He will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” Psalm 121:1-8 What a beautiful song of praise this is for all that believe and trust in God. It is said that the ancient Israelites…

“… I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.” 2 Timothy 1:12 What have we entrusted to the Lord? Our homes, our lives, our family, our future, our eternity?  We cannot always trust the “securities” of this world. Banks fail, companies go broke,  pensions are lost, and relationships fall apart. But, whatever we have dedicated to God is safe.  We are told in Hebrews 10:23, “hold on to to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” God is faithful! We must be faithful too and believe that all that we have given to God is protected and in His mighty hands. So, what should we entrust to God? Everything! Our children,…

“Greater love has no one than this, he lay down his life for his friends.”  John 15:13 Memorial Day - the unofficial start of summer. We look forward to time off work, relaxing by the pool, taking trips, or maybe cooking out. We hope the weather is good and nothing disturbs our “me”time. Although we all need time to rest and recuperate, we also  know that Memorial Day is much more than just a few days off work. What we call Memorial Day was at first called Remembrance Day or Decoration Day. It was a time to remember and/or place flowers on the graves of those that had died in wars. On May 30, 1868 the first national Memorial Day was observed and a proclamation  was given that called  on…

“Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come into his courts.  Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth.” Psalm 96:7-8  School years are ending, summer is about to begin, families are preparing for vacations, and life is forever changing.  But wherever we are this summer, everyday is a new opportunity to worship and praise  our Lord. Whether we are in a formal setting such as a church, relaxed by the pool, working at our jobs or traveling to new discoveries we can always see His goodness and find ways to thank and glorify this awesome God. Our Lord  is worthy of all our praise! Let us worship Him with our whole hearts and give Him the…