LOOK UP- GOD'S BLESSING IS BEFORE YOU, BUT YOU HAVE TO LOOK FOR IT TO SEE IT

LOOK UP- GOD'S BLESSING IS BEFORE YOU, BUT YOU HAVE TO LOOK FOR IT TO SEE IT

Living by the "Yes"

The future of the world is in the hands of the believers ( No pressure there, eh?)



It has been proven that only 3 percent of retail employees are honest as a character trait. Most are honest simply because they know they might get caught.



Likewise, the vast majority of bank tellers are honest only because of the bank security measures they know are in place.



The point is this: We live in a society that is morally bankrupt, trying to live a life guided by it's own rules.

The problem with this is that we are very good at making our own rules, and worse at following  them. (The old parental advise of "Do as I say, not as I do" is a perfect example.

The major issue at hand is  that modern society has determined that there is no God and we are free to do as we please.



Just because the majority of the people agree with a lie does not  make it a truth- IT IS STILL A LIE.



What is driving us back to God is the reality that it is becoming difficult to live on the denial of the faith of others.

Denial leads to disappointment and disillusion. There is no hope in a life of denial.



We can come to the dinner table, stocked with good food, every day and turn our backs in disgust and denial. But only for a time.

Eventually hunger will break our will and cause us to move to acceptance. Our stomachs will affirm what our eyes refuse to accept.



The Spiritual man is the same- We were not created to be negative people.



We must live by the "Yes", the affirmative. And that "Yes" has to be God.



Mark 11.22 (NLT) "Have Faith in God"

Baby Dedication

Probably one of the most enjoyable moments  for pastor's is:

The Baby Dedication:

The Blessed Hope that is the innocence of a child

 The Promise of a family to raise up the child in the way that

they should go

Knowing that it takes more than luck or good 

fortune to raise a child.

IN SEARCH OF GOD

 Last week we looked at the thought of trying to find  peace in world where there seems to be very little of it.

In realizing that true peace can only come from God, we need to begin to accept the fact that God does, in fact exist, and that He has a plan and a way to give us, not just a life of peace, but a life of abundance.

This week, we explore the reason why so many secular, humanistic attempts at world peace and inner peace fall sadly short of the mark.

In Job 10, verses 20-22, Job is in a dire place, as he proclaims,

         "I have only a few days left, so leave me alone, I have only a few days left, so leave me alone, that I may have a moment of comfort..."

         "...It is a land as dark as midnight, a land of gloom and confusion, where even the light is dark as midnight."

Okay, Job is not in a happy place. He has lost  his focus and he has lost perspective.

As our world has tried to eliminate God from the picture, we are left with a world that feels just as Job did.

Eliminate God and our lives become an inane, meaningless attempt of survival, hoping against hope to hold off death for as long as possible.

An artist once said that, "If I can get the sky right, I can get the picture right."

God is our sky, and when our sky isn't right, nothing else fits into place either.

Since the brash declaration that, "God is Dead" by the great philosophers of our time, mankind has yearned for God  to come back.

If God is dead, than there is no hope for humanity, If God is dead than life becomes very difficult, with no end in sight.

But in 1 Corinthians 15, the Apostle Paul writes, "But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died."

That is our blessed hope of a better tomorrow and an eternity found in the peace and rest of God.

God's not dead, He hasn't gone on vacation. We just need to draw near to Him

Floating the Blackfoot River

One of my favorite times of the year is the Annual Men's Float down the Blackfoot river in Central Montana.

This year we added a special Fishing Float for us guys who like to fish the river more than 

have water fights on the river.

My contribution for this trip- 1 Cutthroat trout (on protected list) so he went back

in the river.

The scenery, as always was stunning 

(God really did a great job with our little planet)

The atmosphere was relaxed and casual

And the river was running high

There was a good time around the fire every evening

Oh yes, the fire! Always a good thing

Already looking forward to next year!

Broken Bread and Poured out Wine

It's been a while since I've posted, and I will endeavor to try to be more consistent in the future.

It was an honor and pleasure to have my folks join us in service this last week.

Even more of a blessing was to be able to share communion with them

It reminds me of what Oswald Chambers wrote about in "My Utmost for His Highest"

We are not saved by the shed blood of Christ just for our own betterment. 

The Broken bread and Poured out wine should remind us that the sacrifice of Christ on the

Cross was for us to be able to represent that same self-sacrifice to and for others.

We become the mirror image of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ when our lives represent, 

not just a willingness to sacrifice for others, but a lifestyle of sacrifice that becomes so 

automatic, that we don't even question it.

Jesus gave more than just a broken human body for us.

He gave up His place in eternity to live as a man.

He gave up more than we, mere mortals, could ever comprehend.

Our Utmost, for Him, is the least that we can do

Our First Year Anniversary

 Hard to believe...

 ...that it's been...

...One year in Lame Deer.