The Heavens Declare the Glory of God?

Greetings!!!

Are you a stargazer? For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by what I observed in the sky and wondered what was out there. I would read about black holes, super novas, nebulae, stars and galaxies that are millions of light-years away, and try to imagine them. At the time I did not know why I was so fascinated by everything that has to do with outer space. I was enthralled with space, and dreamed of exploring it someday. It was not until I came into a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ that I began to understand my attraction to the stars. 

Psalm 19: 1-6 helped me to understand.

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.

Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.

There is no speech or language where their voice in not heard.

Their voice goes out to all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.

In the heavens He has pitched a tent for the sun, 

which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion,

like a champion rejoicing to run his course.

It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other;

nothing is hidden from its heat.

What is the work of God's hand that the heavens are trying to declare to all the world? Take a look at the core of the Whirlpool galaxy M51 taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. Scientist believe this to be a giant black hole in the center of this galaxy.

 

                  www.scienceclarified.com/Bi-Ca/black-Hole.html 

What is the glory that the heavens are declaring? That Jesus died on the cross, that He took the punishment for your sins so that you could be free to serve Him, and live forever with Him in heaven. Have you accepted Jesus' sacrifice on the cross as all that is needed to make you right with God? Will you be with Jesus when you die? I long to see you there.

For more listening to the stars visit: www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/iotd.html

The LORD bless you with hearing the voice of the heavens.

I love you,

Ruth

Let Everything That Has Breath, Praise the LORD!

Greetings!!!

What weather are you experiencing this morning? Here in central Pennsylvania, it is dark and dreary, and it looks like it will probably rain all day. How does a day like this make you feel? One of my first experiences this morning was walking outside with Elizabeth to say goodbye. Apart from the patter of rain, what sound do you think I heard? The birds were singing! One in particular that I was able to pick out quickly was the "Cheer, cheer, cheer!" of the bright red cardinal. My first thought was, he must be soaked, and yet he sings.

As I walked back into the house, I heard "Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!" 

So my encouragement for you today is from Psalm 150.

PRAISE the LORD!

Praise God in His sanctuary;

Praise Him in His mighty expanse..

Praise Him for His mighty deeds;

Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.

Praise Him with the trumpet sound;

Praise Him with harp and lyre.

Praise Him with timbrel and dancing;

Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.

Praise Him with loud cymbals;

Praise Him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.

Praise the LORD!

I do not see any qualifications on the command to praise the LORD. It does not say that you do not need to if it is gloomy and raining. There is no exception because you have a headache or are sick with some sort of disease, even if it is something unusual or even if there are various illnesses that you are battling. It does not say that you do not need to praise the LORD if you are fighting with your children or had a spat with your spouse. And no, I do not see an exception for sin and failure. As much as God desires your praise, the praise in not for His benefit. It is for yours. Praise changes you and ushers the presence of God into your life, giving your life purpose and meaning, even on a dingy, raining morning. So praise the LORD! Praise Him loudly! Join in with the birds that will not let the rain stop their praise. 

The LORD bless you with singing His praises today.

I love you,

Ruth

Preparing Your Heart for Holy Week from Pastor Tom Rees

I invite you to join me on a week long journey that leads us from Palm Sunday to the cross to the resurrection of Easter morning.

During this journey I encourage you to participate in any or all of these three ways;

1) Reflection: Spending time each day reflecting on the events that happened during Holy Week through taking time in the Bible reading and prayer. This is a great way to prepare our heart to re-discover of the amazing gift of new life that is found in Jesus.

Below you will find a suggested Scripture Reading Plan to help you. The selected Scriptures are arranged chronologically from the Four Gospels with Extra Reading Material for each day of the Week. Do not let it overwhelm you. Let God's word speak to your spirit.

1. Sunday, March 16

Matt. 20: 17 - 34; Mark 10: 32 - 52; Luke 18:31 - 43

2. Monday, March 17

Matt 21:1-11; Mark 11:1 - 10; Luke 19: 29 - 38; John 12:12 - 15

3. Tuesday, March 18

Matt. 21:12 - 17; Mark 11:15 - 17; Luke 19: 45 - 46

4. Wednesday, March 19

Matt. 21:18 - 26:16; Mark 11:11 - 14:11; Luke 20:1- 22:5

5. Thursday, March 20

Matt. 26:17 - 75; Mark 14:12 - 72; Luke 22:2 - 62; John 13:21 - 18:27

6. Friday, March 21

Matt. 27:1- 61; Mark 15: 1- 47; Luke 22: 66 - 23:55; John 19:28 - 19:42

7. Saturday, March 22

Matt. 27:62 - 66; Luke 23:56

8. Sunday, March 23

Matt. 28:1 - 8; Mark 16:1 - 6; Luke 24:1 - 11; John 20:1 - 8

2) Fasting: Consider giving something up during this week in order to help you focus, and to humble yourself before God.

3) Fellowship: I encourage you not to experience Holy week alone. Pray with your family or a good friend, share your journey, read Scriptures together and discuss things that God is teaching you.

Make this week a special time for each of us to press in with God and reflect on the  amazing sacrifice He made for us. Have a blessed week!

Cut From the Vine

Greetings!!!

Have  you ever gotten a bouquet of flowers or even a single rose? Our daughter Sarah received flowers on Saturday following her performance as Dorothy in the "Wizard of Oz". The flowers are beautiful. The colors are so bright and vivid. The red rose looks like it could be made of velvet. But before the end of the week, every one of the flowers will begin to wither, turn brown and die. I know with certainty that this will happen because these flowers are no longer connected to the plants that provided life. 

As a follower of Christ, you are just like those flowers. Here is what Jesus said in John 15:1-6. "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so  neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch, and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned."

Are you like Sarah's flower, separated from the vine? Although you may look full of life,  you are actually withering because you cut off from the  source of life. You do not have to remain separated from life in Jesus Christ. You can be grafted into the True Vine the source of everlasting life and never wither and die. You just need to ask Him to be your source of life.

The LORD bless you with everlasting life in Jesus.

I love you,

Ruth

Are You Ready?

Greetings!!!

Are you a saint? Will you be in heaven when you die? Will your death be precious in the sight of the LORD? Betty Landis was a saint. She knew beyond a doubt that she would be in heaven with the Savior at the moment of her death. Yes, oh yes, her death on March 5, 2008, was precious in the sight of the LORD. Although her family and friends are grieving their loss, Betty is with the Savior she loved so dearly while she walked this earth. Betty has joined her voice with the great cloud of witnesses. I can almost hear her still encouraging us in our walk with the Lord. 

Hebrews 12:1- 3 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race mark out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."

Can you hear her singing the chorus of this song about the cloud of witnesses? 

"They're saying, 

'Go on. Children of God go on.

Our God has brought us through.

Go on. Children of God go on.

He will do the same for you.' "

Betty had a close relationship with Jesus. Betty was ready to meet the Lord. Although dead to this world, Betty has truly begun to live. Everyone of us is dying. You are dying. Whether it is today or one hundred years from today, a day will come when you will also stand before the Lord. What will you say when He asks you, "Why should I let you into My heaven?" Are you ready?

The LORD bless you with being ready to meet Him.

I love you,

Ruth

Written By: Betty M. Landis

I sit inside the warmth and shelter of my home

looking out at the winter storm raging.

The wind blows the falling snow into a foggy mist

that limits my view of familiar things.

The trees are swaying and bending

to the fierceness of the gale.

              I feel a sense of security and protection

   inside my warm kitchen.

Then I think of Jesus and his loving care for me

and the shelter he offers us from the storms of

life that constantly surround us.

        In him we have our living and being.

He is our shelter in the time of the storm in our life.

And just as we put on warm clothing for protection

  against the cold and wind when we must go out,

        so Jesus clothes us in his righteousness to protect us 

   from the storms in our life when he sends us forth.

Are You a Saint?

Greetings!!!

Are you a saint? According to the New World Dictionary of American English, a saint is an especially holy person, who has died and believed to be with God. According to the Biblical definition, saint is a designation, not of individual moral purity, but of spiritual union with Christ. 

Consider these words from Psalm 116:15: "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints." Are you one of His saints? If you are having difficulty with this question, 1 John 5:9-13 should help you. "If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for the witness of God is this, that He has borne witness concerning His Son. The one who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the witness that God has borne concerning His Son. And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life."

If you have the Son, Jesus Christ, living in you, you are a saint. Are you a saint? Do you want to be? It is not based on your goodness or your worth, but on the goodness and worth of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for you. Jesus took the punishment for your sins so you would not have to receive that punishment. To be a saint all you have to do is recognize that He took your punishment and ask Him to live in you so you can live for Him. Then you to will be a saint, not because you are good or holy, but because you have a relationship with Christ. Are you a saint? If not, what are you waiting for?

The LORD bless you with choosing to be one of His saints.

I love you,

Ruth