Observing Grace

December 25, 2011

2011-12-25T09:07:00.007-07:00

December 18, 2011

2011-12-18T13:29:00.005-07:00

December 11, 2011 - Grace River's 2nd Birthday

2011-12-11T16:01:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrated Grace River's 2nd birthday.

Grace River 2011 - Year 2

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November 27, 2011 - Sunday Service

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November 13, 2011 - Sunday Service

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October 30, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-10-30T13:28:00.001-06:00

Today we had our Fall Festival for our kids. They were encouraged to dress up and then participate in various games.

We also had our annual "Trunk or Treat" where the kids move from car to car and collect their treats.

October 23, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-10-23T13:28:00.000-06:00

We had Cameron Pacheco as our guest worship leader today. Cameron stepped in and led us in worship one Sunday last year when we were in the Holy Cross building. We loved him then and we love him now. Thanks Cameron!

October 16, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-10-16T13:56:00.000-06:00

Today was the Grace River Prayer Team poster contest. The Prayer Team chose the name G.R.O.W. in G.O.D. which stands for Grace River Outreach to Worship and God Opens Doors. We had several outstanding entries.

Denise Paye had the winning entry. Her logo will accompany any literature and also work as an identifier as we make our prayer ministry available in the church and the community.

Congratulations Denise!

Tina, Amanda, Kyle, and Amy led us in worship today.

We also had a potluck because we love to eat!

Sept. 30 - Oct. 1 - 1st Grace River Women's Retreat

2011-10-01T23:34:00.000-06:00

We had our first ever Grace River Women's Retreat this weekend at the Wind River Lodge at the YMCA at Estes Park.

We had great door prizes.

Tina and Denise led us in a great time of worship.

Debbie Becker was our guest speaker.

September 18, 2011 - Ordination Service and Chili Cook-off

2011-09-18T14:09:00.000-06:00

Today was a special service. Joey Scott and Derek Donahoe were ordained during this morning's service.

Together as a church, we prayed over both Joey and Derek and their families.

We had an awesome time of worship.

Pastor Dave continued his sermon series about 10 Who Overcame with today's lesson over Moses.

Today was also our 2nd annual Grace River Chili Cook-off.

Our winner this year was Retta Johnston. Congratulations!

August 21, 2011 - Baptism Service

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Today Grace River had her 3rd baptism service and baptised 10 believers.

August 21, 2011 - Sunday Service

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July 17, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-07-17T12:44:00.000-06:00

Pictures courtesy of April Williamson. Thanks April!

Church Hike - Bridal Veil Falls

2011-07-16T18:18:00.000-06:00

July 3, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-07-04T16:19:00.001-06:00

Today was our last park service and we were blessed to have Zac Crider and Jered Lish lead us in worship. Thanks guys! You were awesome!

We also had our baptism service today where 6 believers were baptized.

June 26, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-06-26T15:36:00.003-06:00

Today was a gorgeous day to be in the park.

We believe at Grace River that everyone is here for a purpose. We encourage everybody at Grace River to use the gifts and talents that God has given to them - that includes our kids.

We'd like to pass along our "Congratulations!!" to Skip and Roberta who just celebrated 50 years of marriage. We love you guys!

Our youth pastor, Joey, read a card to the congregation this morning from Barbara Kinsey who believes so much in our youth ministry and in our church as a whole that she is sponsoring every single one of our teenagers so they can attend a youth retreat this summer. Somehow the words "thank you" don't seem to be enough....

We had an absolutely wonderful and Spirit-filled time of worship this morning.

June 19, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-06-19T19:07:00.000-06:00

Today we were blessed with the Bost Family Traditions. The Bost family is an extraordinarily talented family that performs award winning bluegrass all across the country. It's been 2 years since they have been in Windsor and we were thrilled to have them here with us this morning. Find out more about the Bost family by clicking here.

Our little ones had the right idea.

June 12, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-06-12T15:25:00.001-06:00

Today was an exciting day. This past week, Grace River had her first ever vacation bible school. It was held at Windsor Main Park and we had 20 volunteers and 21 kids in attendance.

In addition to it being VBS Sunday, it was also our first Sunday back in the park. We had a lot of help setting up.

We love worshipping in the park. Out of the 6 locations we have worshipped at, the park is one of our favorites.

Some of our VBS kids shared a song with us about the Fruits of the Spirit.

Derek, Kara, Jaren, and Zach led us in worship.

Today was also a day of prayer.

In addition to doing a lot of praying at Grace River, we also do a lot of eating. We had a great BBQ after the service this morning.

We also had games.....

And of course, cotton candy!

June 5, 2011 - 1st Annual Grace River Car Show

2011-06-05T16:58:00.009-06:00

We had an awesome, awesome day today for our first annual car show and food drive for the Weld County Food Bank.

We had an absolutely beautiful morning for set-up.

Great Worship!

Great Congregation!

Great Sermon!

Great food by Steven Vanscoy!

Great music by DJ Bill Smith!

Great Fun!

Great Bikes!

And Great Cars!

May 29, 2011 - Sunday Service - Skyview Elementary

2011-05-29T13:44:00.001-06:00

Today we worshipped at Skyview Elementary (due to weather that was not conducive to worshipping in the park). Skyview just happens to be the 6th location that Grace River has worshipped at.
Remember:
Location #1 - Ohana Coffee + Tea
Location #2 - Holy Cross building
Location #3 - Windsor Main Park
Location #4 - Mark's Funeral Home
Location #5 - Severance Middle School

The great thing about being a nomadic church is that we have fun where ever we are at.

We had another great time of worship.....

And special blessings...

Next week we head to location #7 at Good Samaritan in Water Valley.

May 22, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-05-22T16:11:00.001-06:00

We are sending our first missionaries out into the field. Kyle and Pam Buchanan will be moving to South Dakota where they will be joining the Wings as Eagles Ministry and bringing the gospel to the Lakota Sioux Nation on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Find more out about Wings as Eagles Ministries here.

We will miss them but we are very excited about how God is working in their lives and how God plans on using them. We are sending them with our prayers.

Today was our last service at Severance Middle School until after the 4th of July. Next week we will be outdoors again at Windsor Main Park. We had a great time in the park last summer and we're looking forward to it again this summer.

Join us next week at Windsor Main Park and then at Good Samaritan in Water Valley on June 5th for our first annual worship, car show, and food drive for the Weld County Food Bank. Find out more information about that here.

May 18, 2011 - WHS Baccalaureate Service

2011-05-20T16:52:00.001-06:00

The Grace River Worship Team had the honor of performing at this year's Baccalaureate Service at Windsor High School.

Pictures courtesy of Tina Samples.

Derek, Zach (on drums), Kara, Jaren, Amy, and Kyle

May 8, 2011 - Mother's Day

2011-05-08T13:33:00.006-06:00

Photos courtesy of John Chrisman.

Youth Group "Murder Mystery" Dinner

2011-05-02T13:32:00.000-06:00

Photos courtesy of John Chrisman.

May 1, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-05-01T13:12:00.007-06:00

Photos are courtesty of John Chrisman.

April 24, 2011 - Easter Sunday

2011-04-24T14:46:00.001-06:00

Today was Grace River's 2nd Easter Celebration. We had a lot to set up this morning....

We had decorations to set up.

Sound equipment to plug in.

Goodies to set out.

And lilies to arrange.

Derek was unable to sing due to a sore throat but he stepped in and helped with the overhead.

We had a group sing the congregation in with "Oh Happy Day"

We had a great time of worship.

Grace River's drama team performed for the first time and did an outstanding job.

Pastor Dave preached a great sermon.

We had a special time of invitation.

And then of course, the Easter egg hunt........

for kids of all ages.

Happy Easter! He is Risen!

April 17, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-04-17T17:51:00.000-06:00

Today was Palm Sunday so our kids started off the service.

Here's Jamie. She's one of our big kids. She's also in charge of our children's ministry.

Roberta is in charge of our prayer ministry.

Pastor Dave was sick today so Tina stepped in at the last minute and provided us with an exceptional lesson from her JOURNEY study.

Derek, Kara, Kyle, and Zach provided worship today.

This is Steve. Steve is an ordained pastor and is also in charge of our small group ministry.

These are some of our Grace River worshippers. We love our kids because they worship just the way the bible tells us to.

Celebrate Recovery

2011-04-01T21:14:00.001-06:00

Our very own Tina Samples helped lead worship at Celebrate Recovery tonight at Crossroads Church in Loveland. Find out more about Celebrate Recovery at Crossroads here.

February 13, 2011 - Sunday Service

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February 6, 2011 - Sunday Service

2011-02-06T16:39:00.000-07:00

Today was a day of guests. We were very blessed to have Layne Arakaki and Tina Samples co-lead worship this morning. Derek has come down with the flu so we appreciate Tina and Layne being able to step in at the last minute and do such a good job leading us in worship.

Tom Pals was our guest speaker today. Tom is an ordained pastor as well as a licensed counselor and he will be with us for the entire month of February. Today Tom introduced "futile thinking" and helped us to begin to think and live in terms of what's beneficial vs what's detrimental. Be sure to join us next week when Tom teaches from Romans 12:13.

Grace River Worship Ministry

2011-02-01T19:09:00.001-07:00

This is the ins and outs of the Grace River Worship Ministry.

January 30, 2011 - Sunday Service

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January 23, 2011 - Sunday Service

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January 16, 2011 - Sunday Service

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January 9, 2011 - Sunday Service

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Before

After

The Grace River Sound Booth...lol

Then and Now

2011-01-01T13:43:00.000-07:00

December 13, 2009

Grace River's First Service

Ohana Coffee & T

Loveland, CO

63 present

December 12, 2010

Grace River's One Year Anniversary

Severance Middle School

Severance, CO

150 present

Both pictures are courtesy of John Chrisman.

December 26, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-12-26T13:34:00.000-07:00

We had another fabulous day of worship at Grace River this morning.

Pastor Dave gave a good sermon titled, "Finding God in Your Crisis" that centered around Matthew 1:18-25. As the saying goes, you are either coming out of a crisis, in the middle of a crisis, or about to go into a crisis. Nobody is immune and Pastor Dave talked about the importance of listening to God and getting confirmation from God during these times. We also got a "sneak peak" into next week's sermon which will be about how finances are discussed in the bible.

This is a big "Thank You" to a couple of our unsung heroes (aka nursery workers), April Williamson and Debbie Staley. Glenda Mills is our nursery coordinator and also does a fantastic job.

Grace River - where we're all about family.

December 19, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-12-19T15:44:00.000-07:00

Today we had our first ever Grace River Christmas play and the kids (as well as Jamie and Denise) did a fantastic job! Trying to put on a Christmas play when there is no building to hold practices in is difficult but we did it and the kids were great!

This is what the sound team's copy of the play looked like.

Rehearsal

Pastor Steve sharing with the kids about Advent.

The Program

Thanks for joining us!

Experiencing God #54 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-12-16T20:40:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #54

Essentials of Fellowship

#1 We must love God with our total beings. "This is the first and greatest commandment" (Matt. 22:37-38). If you love God, you will obey Him (John 14:21-24). If you love Him, you also will love your brother (1 John 4:21; 5:3). If your fellowship with God is right--if you love Him with your total being--you will even be able to love your enemies.

A threat to fellowship in a church is anything that causes you to lose your "first love" for God. This was the problem with the church at Ephesus (Rev. 2:1-7).

Loving money or things more than God will break your fellowship with Him. When your love is not pure toward God, fellowship with God is broken. For example: Suppose a person begins to love things more than more than God. When fellowship with God is broken, love for others will suffer. A person who loves things more than God will become stingy and greedy. When he sees a brother in need, he will keep his "things" to use for himself. He will not give to help others. Materialism is a terrible trap that robs many people of their love for God.

Experiencing God #53 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-12-16T20:38:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #53

God's Remedy for Sin
* Humble yourself. Do not try to justify yourself. Do not hold on to pride.
* Pray. God hears the prayer of repentance.
* Confess your sin to God. Agree with Him that it is wrong. Confess to all who have been directly affected by your sin and ask for their forgiveness (Matt. 5:23-24).
* Repent. Turn away from your sinful ways and return to God and His ways.
* Seek God's face. Seek to renew fellowship with God. Talk to Him. Listen for His voice.
* If your sin has been an ongoing problem, confess the sin to one or more Christian friends and ask them to pray or you to be set free from sin's bondage (Jas. 5:16).
* Grieve. Ask God to help you understand how He feels about your sin. His desire is that you feel grief. When your heart is broken over your sin, you will be less likely to ever repeat the offense (Ps. 51:17).
* Submit yourself to God. Resist the devil. Purify your heart (Jas. 4:7-10).
* Claim the promises of forgiveness, cleansing, and healing (2 Chron. 7:14; 1 John 1:9).
* Then live in the victory Jesus gives through His resurrection power!

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God

Experiencing God #52 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-12-16T20:36:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #52

We cannot be in fellowship with God and not walk in godly fellowship with one another!

"Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness" (1 John 2:9-11).

"This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother" (1 John 3:10).

"We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him" (1 John 3:14-15).

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?" (1 John 3:16-17)

"Let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love" (1 John 4:7-8).

"Since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us" (1 John 4:11-12).

"If anyone says, 'I love God,' yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother" (1 John 4:20-21).

"Everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands" (1 John 5:1-2).

The Grace River Video

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December 12, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-12-12T14:23:00.000-07:00

Today is the day we've been waiting a whole year for. That's right....it's Grace River's first birthday! We've been in existence for 365 days now. Steve Vanscoy provided this wonderful cake and a fabulous catered breakfast.

A year ago, we never imagined that this is where we would be today. We have doubled in size, worshiped in 5 different locations, and utilized 6 worship leaders. I guess you could say that the one thing that hasn't changed through this past year is that we still have the same pastor....lol

I think God has big, big plans for us in our next 365 days.

Experiencing God #51 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-12-10T15:18:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #51

Read The Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds - Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43.

"Membership rolls of churches are not the true test of whether a person belongs to the Kingdom. Just because a person has some resemblance to other Christians does not mean he is a Christian. Using this parable, Jesus teaches that some lost and evil people are mixed with true believes in churches. Notice, however, that God is the one who will make the final judgment about each person's relationship to Him. We should give ourselves to helping true believers grow and bear fruit. God will do the weeding out of unbelievers. That is His job. When a person is not bearing fruit, we should let God work through us to help the person with his deepest spiritual need. He knows what that need is, and what needs to be done about it." --Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God.

Experiencing God #50 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-12-10T15:17:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #50

"When you respond to God's invitation to an intimate love relationship with Him, He brings you into a partnership with Himself. God has added you to a local body of believers. Together you are the body of Christ in your community. As Head of your church, Christ Himself is guiding and working through your church to accomplish the will of the Father".

"When God speaks to you through the Holy Spirit, He is going to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways. Citizens in God's kingdom are to function to accomplish God's purposes in kingdom ways not in human ways. 'My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are you ways my ways' declares the Lord. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts' (Isaiah 55:8-9). The principles of God's kingdom and the principles of the world are vastly different. Human ways will not bring forth lasting spiritual fruit. God's purposes are accomplished only by God's ways".

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God

Experiencing God #49 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-12-10T15:15:00.001-07:00

Experiencing God #49

First Corinthians 12:7 and 18 tell us that God is one who adds members to the body as it pleases Him. He adds them to the body for the common good of the whole body. When God adds a member to our body, we have cause for rejoicing. God does not add anyone to our church accidentally. Every person comes to Grace River to make us more complete. None of us knows what a person may go through in the days to come. God may have added a person because He knows that he will need our ministry. They may be here to help lead us to a new ministry.

"If I were going to be a wight lifter, I would train my body so that it could lift weights effectively. If I were going to be a sprinter, I would train my body differently. When I want to do a job well, I train my body to match the assignment. When God builds a local church as the body of Christ, He adds members to the body and trains them to match the assignment He has for that body. He builds a local church body in a way that enables that body to respond to Him. Then God can accomplish an assignment through that body". (Henry Blackaby).

Because we know God builds the body to match the assignment, we should pay close attention to the people God adds to Grace River. This may be an indication of an assignment that God is getting us ready for.

December 5, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-12-05T15:51:00.000-07:00

Awesome, awesome, awesome worship this morning.

Experiencing God #48 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-12-05T15:47:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #48

How to Have a Unified Church:

"Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. . . . each of us will give an account of himself to God. Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way" (Romans 14:1, 12-13).

"Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others" (1 Corinthians 10:24).

"Each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body" (Ephesians 4:25).

"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to thir needs, that it may benefit those who listen" (Ephesians 4:29).

"Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you" (Ephesians 4:31-32).

"Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything" (Ephesians 5:29-20).

"Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ" (Ephesians 5:21).

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity" (Colossians 3:13-14).

Experiencing God #47 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-12-05T15:46:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #47

Paul wrote the Corinthian church, a local body of believers, and said: "You are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it" (1 Cor. 12:27). Just as your physical body needs every part in order to live a normal and healthy life, so the church needs every member in order to live a normal and healthy church life. No member can say of any other member, I don't need you. Apart from the other members of the church (the body) you will not be able to experience the fullness of life God has intended for you. When one member is missing or not functioning as God intended, the rest of the body will miss out on the fullness of life God has intended for the church.

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God

November 28, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-11-28T15:21:00.000-07:00

We had another "Grace River" day at church today. The worship was amazing and the Spirit was present. I'm pretty sure that if God wasn't blessing Grace River, we would not have the type of worship services that we have. We can't create that. It only comes from the Holy Spirit.

Today is the first Sunday in Advent so we had some of our kids participate in the lighting of the first candle. Advent is a period of preparation that spans the 4 Sundays prior to Christmas. It means "coming" and refers to the coming of Christ.

We are quickly approaching our one year birthday as a church. I remember the night before our first service last year; I had to go to Radio Shack to pick up a cord that we needed for the service and then went over to Wal-mart where I ran into Tina who was buying a power strip and an extension cord - also needed for the service. We were buying, begging, and borrowing everything that we needed right up until the 11th hour but God came through for us and made sure we had everything we needed. A year later, He's still coming through for us and making sure we have everything we need.

Experiencing God #46 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-27T17:08:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #46

The first part of 1 Corinthians 12 talks about the Holy Spirit enabling each member. Verse 7 says, "To each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good" (1 Cor. 12:7). The Holy Spirit is the Gift (Acts 2:38). The Holy Spirit manifests (makes visible, clear, known; reveals) Himself to each member of the body for the common good of the body.

ALL members of the church--Christ's body--are gifted with the Holy Spirit's presence. Each persons' experience of the Holy Spirit is for the good of the body not for himself or herself. That is why we need each other. Without a healthy and functioning body, a church will miss much of the good God provides for a church.

Experiencing God #45 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-26T13:17:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #45

The church does not come to know the will of God in just the same way an individual does. A Church comes to know the will of God when the whole body understands what Christ--the Head--is telling them.

Individuals come to know God's will through an intimate love relationship with God. The Holy Spirit speaks through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways.

In the Old Testament God spoke to His people through a leader--a prophet, a priest, a king, and so forth. With the coming of the Holy Spirit on the church at Pentecost, God came to dwell in every believer. He created the body--a local church--so that every member needed every other member. In the body of Christ every believer has direct access to God. God can speak to any and every member of the body. He can work through the whole body in revealing His will.

When God speaks to a person abut the church, the person should share with the body what he or she senses God is saying. As each member shares what he senses God is saying, the whole body goes to God in prayer to discern His will for the body. In His timing God confirms to the body what He is saying. Individual opinions are not that important. The will of God is very important. When Christ is able to guide each spiritual leader and member of the body to function properly, the whole body will know and be enabled to do God's will.

A church comes to know God's will when the whole body comes to understand what Christ wants them to do. For a church, knowing God's will may involve many members, not just one. Yes, God often will speak to the leader about what He wants to do. That leader then bears witness to the body about what he senses God's will is. The leader does not have to try to convince the church that this is God's will. The leader does not have to ask the congregation to follow him without question. The leader encourages the body to go to Christ and get confirmation from the Head (Christ). The Head does the convincing on His timetable. Then the whole body follows Christ--the Head. This is why a church must learn to function as a body with Christ as the Head of His church.

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God

Experiencing God #44 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-25T18:44:00.001-07:00

Experiencing God #44

A church is the body of Christ. A body functions as one unit with spiritual leaders and members. All are interdependent--they need each other. Each leader and member of the body needs the others to fully know God's will. Each member has a role in the body (Gal. 6:1-5) and each leader has a responsibility to the body to equip the members (Eph. 4:11-13).

Suppose your eye could say to your body, "Let us walk down these train tracks. The way is all clear. Not a train is in sight." So you begin to walk down the tracks. Then suppose your ear says to the body, "I hear a whistle coming from the other direction." Your eye argues, "But nothing is on the track as far as I can see. Let's keep on walking." So your body listens only to your eye and keeps on walking. Soon your ear says, "That whistle is getting louder and closer!" Then your feet say, "I can feel the rumbling motion of a train coming. We better get our body off these tracks!"

God gave our physical bodies many different senses and parts. When each part does its job, the whole body works the way it should. In our physical bodies we do not take votes based on majority rule, ignore conflicting senses, or choose to listen only to one sense and ignore the others. To live that way would be very dangerous.

Because a church is the body of Christ, it functions best when spiritual leaders and members share what they sense God wants the church to be and do. A church needs to hear the whole counsel of God through its spiritual leaders and members. Then it can proceed in confidence and in unity to do God's will.

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God

Experiencing #43 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-24T10:06:00.000-07:00

Experiencing #43

"In Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others" (Romans 12:5).

What Exactly is a Church?

Henry Blackaby gives an excellent biblical description in Experiencing God:

* A church is a creation of Christ. He builds His church (Matt. 16:18) using Spirit-directed pastors and leaders (Eph. 4:11-13) and arranges the members in it according to His will (1 Cor. 12:18). Therefore, spiritual leaders and members should have respect for the pastor and every member God has placed in their church.
* A church is a living body of Christ with many members (1 Cor. 12:27). The church is not a building or an organization. It is a group of people built up into a living body.
* A church is uniquely related to Christ as Head of the body (Eph. 1:22; 4:15-16). All matters in a church are to come under His lordship.
* Members of a church are uniquely related to every other member of the church (Eph. 4:11-16; 1 Cor. 12). All members are interdependent on one another. All members need each other.
* A church is on mission with Christ in our world carrying out the Father's redemptive purpose (Matt. 28:18-20; 2 Cor. 5:17-20). "We are God's fellow workers" (1 Cor. 3:9).

As a member of Grace River, God has chosen you and arranged you within our body according to His preferences. He intends to use you to further build up Grace River and it's members. We need you...and you need us. You are an essential part of God's strategy through Grace River to redeem the lost and broken that are all around us.

Experiencing God #42 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-23T16:13:00.001-07:00

Experiencing God #42

God's plan is for a relationship with you. We get in trouble when we try to get God to tell us all of the details for the future. Just do what you know to do today and don't worry about tomorrow's decisions. Enjoy God today--right now. Become willing to be and to do anything that God chooses for you to be and do today. If you will respond to Him relationally today as Lord, He may lead you to do and be things you would have never dreamed of. God will never give you an assignment that He will not, at the same time, enable you to complete. That is what a spiritual gift is--a supernatural empowering to accomplish the assignment God gives you.

Would you be brave enough to pray this prayer today?

"Lord, I will do anything that your kingdom requires of me today. I'll go wherever you want me to go. If you want to meet a need through my life today, I am your servant; send me to whomever needs me. I will do anything that you ask of me today. I'll willingly serve as your personal representative to whomever you may place in my path."

A Year in Review

2010-11-22T13:41:00.000-07:00

I didn't have my camera at church yesterday and didn't get a blog posted; however, since Pastor Dave mentioned Observing Grace in his Grace Gram this morning I feel that I should post something interesting. So here is a Grace River year in review.

First service - December 13, 2009

Holy Cross Building

Easter

Pastor Moving Day

Church Hike to Horsetooth Falls

At Home in Windsor Main Park

At Mark's Funeral Home due to Rain

Back to Windsor Park for baptisms and the 4th of July

Derek and Kara arrive to lead us in worship

Church Hike to Greyrock

The Grace River booth at the Harvest Festival

Our new home at Severance Middle School

The first GR chili cook-off

Church hike to Lion's Gulch

Trunk or Treat

Onward and Upward - the sky is the limit

Experiencing God #41 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-22T10:25:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #41

"When you come to a moment of truth when you must choose whether to obey God, you cannot obey Him unless you believe and trust Him. You cannot believe and trust Him, unless you love Him. You cannot love Him, unless you know Him."

"Each 'new' command of Jesus will require a new knowledge and understanding of Him. The Holy Spirit will teach you about Jesus, so you can trust Him and obey Him. Then you will experience Him in new ways. This is how you grow in Him. As 1 John 2:3-6 says when you come to know Him you will obey Him. If you do not obey Him, that indicates that you do not know Him."

"If you know that God loves you, you should never question a directive from Him. It will always be right and best. When He gives you a directive, you are not just to observe it, discuss it, or debate it. You re to obey it."
--Henry Blackaby

Read one of the following scriptures on obedience and then turn it into a prayer. Use the content of the verse to express your willingness to obey God.

* Deuteronomy 28:1,8
* Deuteronomy 28:15, 20
* Jeremiah 7:23
* Luke 6:46-49

Experiencing God #40 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-16T15:17:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #40

"Jesus replied, 'If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.'" --John 14:23

God has always been at work in our world. He is now at work where you are. God always will take the initiative to come to you and reveal what He is doing, or what He is about to do. When He does, this will be His invitation for you to join Him.

Joining Him will require major adjustments of your life to Him, so He can accomplish His will through you. When you know what God has said, what He is about to do, and have adjusted your life to Him, there is yet one remaining necessary response to God.

To experience Him at work in and through you, you must obey Him. When you obey Him, He will accomplish His work through you; and you will come to know Him by experience.

* Obedience is the outward expression of your love of God.
* The reward for obedience and love is that He will reveal Himself to you.
* If you have an obedience problem, you have a love problem.
* God is love. His will is always best.
* God is all knowing. His directions are always right.
* God is all powerful. He can enable you to do His will.

"For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother." --Matthew 12:50

In many ways, obedience is your moment of truth. What you do will:
* Reveal what you believe about Him.
* Determine whether you will experience His mighty work in you and through you.
* Determine whether you will come to know Him more intimately.

"We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, 'I know him,' but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did." --1 John 2:3-6

November 14, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-11-14T18:03:00.000-07:00

We were blessed today to be able to use our new projector. God really has a way of using people to provide for Grace River.

Today's lesson was out of Hosea 12 and discussed the futility of trying to rescue ourselves. As much as we want to try and rescue ourselves from our circumstances, it is not possible without God's love. He alone is the only one who can save us.

Prayer is at the core of Grace River. It's what we do and it's not uncommon for the service to stop at the prompting of the Holy Spirit and the congregation to come forward in prayer. We try to be as sensitive to the Holy Spirit as we possibly can and realize that the Spirit can move and speak at any time.

Experiencing God #39 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-13T07:35:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #39

A big part of coming to know and do the will of God is coming into a total dependence upon God. We have to move from doing work for God according to our abilities, our gifts, our likes and dislikes, and our goals to being totally dependent on God and His working and His resources. It's never easy!

Without God at work in you, you can do nothing to bear Kingdom fruit. When God purposes to do something, he guarantees that it will come to pass. He is the One who will accomplish what He purposes to do.

The Bible says:

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." --John 15:5

"The Lord Almighty has sworn, 'Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.'" --Isaiah 14:24

"I am God, and there is none like me. . . . My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please. . . . What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do." --Isaiah 46:9-11

A word about waiting on God--You may think of waiting as a passive, inactive time. Waiting on the Lord is anything but inactive. While you wait on Him, you will be praying with a passion to know Him, His purposes, and His ways. You will be watching circumstances and asking God to interpret them by revealing to you His perspective. You will be sharing with other believers to find out what God is saying to them. As you wait on the Lord, you will be very active in asking, seeking, and knocking (Matt. 7:7-8). While you wait, continue doing the last thing God told you to do. In waiting you are shifting the responsibility of the outcome to God--where it belongs. Then when God gives you specific guidance, He will do through you more in days and weeks than you could ever accomplish in years of labor.

Experiencing God #38 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-11T08:30:00.001-07:00

Experiencing God #38

Obedience is often costly to you and to those around you. There may be a price to be paid when we adjust to and obey the will of God. We say that God is Lord and that he can interrupt us anytime he wants. We just don't expect Him to do it. We expect Him to affirm our plans and to never ask us to change anything. God's invitation to join Him will include major adjustments that just might be costly to us.

Paul had to make a total about-face in direction. He went from persecuting Christians to proclaiming that Jesus was the Christ. His adjustment was costly--even putting his life at risk. He faced opposition and misunderstanding. Paul suffered much for the cause of Christ. However, God was able to do great and mighty things through Paul: healing, teaching, prophesying, and planting churches. God even used Paul to write 2/3 of the New Testament!

You cannot stay where you are and go with God! For you to do the will of God, adjustments will be necessary.

Experiencing God #37 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-10T07:33:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #37

Obedience Requires Adjustments!

* You cannot stay where you are and go with God at the same time.
* Obedience is costly to you and those around you.
* Obedience requires total dependence on God to work through you.

Whenever you identify a place where you refuse to allow God's lordship, that is a place He will go to work. He is interested in absolute surrender. Remember, because God loves you, His will is always best for you!

Adjustments may be required in one or more of the following areas:

* In your circumstances (like job, home, and finances)
* In your relationships (family, friends, business associates...)
* In your thinking (prejudices, methods, potential...)
* In your commitments (family, church, job, plans, tradition...)
* In your actions (praying, giving, serving...)
* In your beliefs

Experiencing God #36 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-08T08:02:00.000-07:00

Experiencing God #36

"Many of us want God to speak to us and give us an assignment. However, we are not interested in making any major adjustments in our lives. Biblical, that is impossible. Every time God spoke to people in the Scripture about something He wanted to do through them, major adjustments were necessary. They had to adjust their lives to God. Once the adjustments were made, God accomplished His purposes through those He called. You cannot continue life as usual or stay where you are, and go with God at the same time. Your greatest single difficulty in following God may come at the point of making adjustments".

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God.

November 7, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-11-07T14:34:00.000-07:00

Today was another special Grace River Sunday. We had a new drum shield as well as a new projector this morning. We also had a monitor that was kindly lent to us. God has really blessed us as a church and given us what we need when we need it.

Our testimony time was a time of tears and a time of laughter and a time where we could come together as a family and share how God is working in our lives. 1 Corinthians 12:18-20 says, "God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body." God has every person at Grace River for a specific purpose and every single one of those purposes is equally important. Its good when we share because it helps us see what God's vision is for us individually, for our families, and for our church.

Our worship time was Spirit-filled. Hands were raised and voices were lifted as we came together to sing praises to the Heavenly Father.

Today was an amazing day. Good worship, good fellowship, good sermon (all about God's fathering love). I can't wait to see what God has in store for us next week.

Experiencing God #35 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-06T14:03:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #35

What I do today reveals what I believe about God, regardless of what I say.
What I believe about God will determine what I do today and how I live.

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God.

Experiencing God #34 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-04T19:09:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #34

God is interested in the world coming to know Him. The only way people will know what God is like is when they see Him at work. God gives us great big "God-sized" assignments so that the world will see God. The kind of assignments God gives in the Bible are always God-sized. They are beyond what people can do, because He wants to demonstrate His nature, His strength, His provision, and His kindness to His people and to a watching world. What the world often sees in our day is a devoted group of nice people doing religious things. But they are not seeing God. The world is not attracted to the Christ we serve, because we have made Him boring. We have tamed Him. Read the Bible and you will see a dangerous God who does over-the-top miraculous works. He is anything but boring. When the world sees things happening through God's people that cannot be explained except that God Himself has done them, then the world will be drawn to the God they see. If we can do it--then it's likely not God. God does the impossible! Remember, it's not for us to dream up impossible things for God to do through us--He is already at work doing the impossible. He simply invites us to join Him so that He can do the impossible through us.

Take some time today to talk with God about the impossible things that He may be doing in and around you. How can you join Him?

Experiencing God #33 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-03T18:27:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #33

"Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see" (Hebrews 11:1).

"We live by faith, not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7).

Jesus said, "Anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, beause I am going to the Father" (John 14:12).

"I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you" (Matthew 17:20-21).

Paul said, "My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power" (1 Corinthians 2:4-5).

"If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all" (Isaiah 7:9).

Faith is confidence that what God has promised or said will come to pass. Sight is an opposite of faith. If you can see clearly how something can be accomplished, more than likely faith is not required. Faith must be in God. It's not a matter of dreaming up what you would like to see happen. It is knowing what God is doing and determining to join him in his work. Before you call yourself, your family, or your church to exercise faith, be sure you have heard a word from God.

When God calls a person to join Him in a God-sized task, faith is always required. Obedience indicates faith in God. Disobedience often indicates a lack of faith. Without faith, a person cannot please God. Without faith, a church cannot please God. God is not asking you to do the impossible--he is asking you to let him do the impossible through you.

Experiencing God #32 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-02T10:39:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #32

"Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Hebrews 11:6).

When God invites you to join Him in His work, He has a God-sized assignment for you. You will realize that you cannot do it on your own. If God doesn't help you, you will fail. This is the crisis point where many decide not to follow what they sense God is leading them to do. How you respond at this turning point will determine whether you go on to be involved with God in something God-sized that only He can do, or whether you will continue to go your own way and miss what God has purposed for your life. What you do in response to God's revelation to you indicates what you really believe about God.

Experiencing God #31 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-11-01T14:24:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #31

A church is a body. It is the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:27)! Jesus Christ is present as Head of a local church (Eph. 4:15), and every member is placed in the body as it pleases God (1 Cor. 12:18). The Holy Spirit manifests Himself to every person for the common good (1 Cor. 12:7). The whole body is fitted together by the Father. Members are enabled and equipped by the Holy Spirit to function where the Father has placed them in the body.

God made us mutually interdependent. We need each other. What one lacks, others in the body can and will supply. Therefore, what God is doing in and through the body is essential to my knowing how to respond to Him. Your gifts match someone else's need. You may have already been where someone else is going and can provide encouragement. Someone else has likely been where you are going and can encourage you. None of us alone has the corner on understanding God's will. Our combined impressions give us a better view of God's activity than what we might see alone. Each Sunday, when we share testimonies, this is an opportunity for us to speak and for us to listen in order to better understand God's activity among us.

Apart from the body, you cannot fully know God's will. Without the eye the hand does not know where to touch. Without the ear the rest of the body may not know when or how to respond. Every member needs to be listening to what the other members are saying. If the members are not talking about what they sense God is doing, the whole body is in trouble.

October 31, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-10-31T16:16:00.000-06:00

We had another great day of worship. Grace River has been blessed with musical talent. Today we had Jaren and Kyle on electric guitar, Amanda and Gary on vocals, Derek on vocals and acoustic guitar, Hunter on bass, and Zach on the drums.

Today's message was out of Hosea 10. Pastor Steve preached about how we often times try to control God as if He were a thermostat. We want to try to control the environment that we are in when we should really be giving that control to God.

Pastor Dave preached about the 7 seeds we don't want to sow.

We were blessed to have Pastors Lori and Gary from Wings As Eagles Ministries speak today. Wings As Eagles Ministries was founded in 1995 by Pastor Lori McAfee as a non-denominational evangelical ministry and relief organization serving on the Wind River Indian Reservation-WY, The Blackfeet Nation-MT, Pine Ridge Reservation-SD, Rosebud reservation-SD, Standing Rock Reservation-ND and other various tribes in the region.

The mission of Wings As Eagles Ministries is to extend the evangelistic calling by proclaiming the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ to all by every effective means available and by equipping other native brothers and sisters to do the same and also to promote positive healthy enviroments and communities on the reservations to produce a productive life style for the native people.

In addition to training native ministry leaders, Wings As Eagles Ministries is also the hands and feet of Jesus on the reservations they serve. They provides backpacks full of school supplies to native children, assist in the purchase of heating fuel during the winter months, help to provide baby clothes, baby food, and diapers to mothers in need, provide Christmas gifts and meals when there might not otherwise be any, and many, many more things. Check out their website here. Grace River will be partnering with Wings As Eagles Ministries so please be in prayer as God reveals how we can best be involved with this ministry.

Since today is Halloween, we had Trunk or Treat for the kids after the service. The kids went trick or treating out of the various cars in the parking lot.

Experiencing God #30 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-30T10:10:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #30

In a decision-making time your greatest difficulty may not be choosing between good and bad, but choosing between good and best. You often may have several options that all appear to be good. At a time like this, the place to start is to say with all of your heart: 'Lord, whatever I know to be Your will, I will do it'.

God works in sequence to accomplish His divine purposes. Every act of God builds on the past with a view toward the future. As you understand God's activity in your past--you will have a great big clue as to his activity in the present. God has been working in your life since before your birth. When God gets ready for you to take a new step or direction in His activity, it will always be in sequence with what He already has been doing.

Often people in the Old Testament would set up a stone marker as a reminder of their encounters with God. The stone would remind them of what God had revealed in the past. It will be helpful for you to identify these "spiritual markers" in your life. A spiritual marker identifies a time of transition, decision, or direction when you clearly know that God has guided you. Over time you can look back at these spiritual markers and see how God has faithfully directed your life according to his divine purpose.

An exercise that I have found to be helpful is to take the time to think through my life identifying the major events and transitions. By meditating on these key events in my life I have identified spiritual markers and have thus gained a better understanding of how God has been working in my life. This helps me understand my future and thus helps me make decisions in the present.

Give it a try--get a piece of paper and outline your life focusing on the key events. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you what God was doing and accomplishing in each event or transition.

Experiencing God #29 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-30T10:08:00.001-06:00

Experiencing God #29

We cannot know the truth of our circumstances, until we have heard from God.

In Exodus 5-6 Moses did as he was told and asked Pharaoh to let Israel go. The result of his asking was that Pharaoh increased the hardships of the Israelites. The people were furious with Moses, and Moses in turn was ready to quit. The immediate aftermath of Moses' obedience was great difficulty. Moses complained to God and God revealed to Moses that he was purposely allowing Pharaoh's heart to become hardened so that God could reveal His power to the Israelites by dramatically delivering them. It would have been very easy for Moses to look at his circumstances and then conclude that he had somehow misunderstood God's will. In reality, God was setting up a great show of His power!

We make mistakes when we make decisions purely based on circumstances. We must discover God's perspective of our circumstances in order to understand the truth of what God is doing.

As live your life today--let me encourage you to periodically stop and ask God for his perspective.you

Experiencing God #28 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-30T10:07:00.001-06:00

Experiencing God #28

The Holy Spirit uses the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to speak to us and to show us the Father's will. Jesus described the way that he knew what to do every day in John 5:17, 19-20. You might want to take a moment and look that up.

God sometimes used circumstances to reveal to Jesus what He was to do. Jesus always was looking for where the Father was at work, and joined Him. Jesus did not have to guess what to do. Jesus did not have to dream up what He could do for the Father. He watched to see what the Father was doing around His life, and Jesus put His life there. Following Jesus' example, we are to place our lives at God's disposal--where He is working--so He can accomplish His purposes through us.

Sometimes circumstances appear to be "bad". To understand your difficult circumstances, God's perspective is vital. When you face difficult or confusing circumstances, they can overwhelm you. If you put yourself in the middle of the circumstances and try to look at God, you will always have a distorted understanding of God. For instance you might say, "God doesn't love me" or "God is not fair." Both of these statements about God are false.

So what should you do when life is hard? First, go to God and ask Him to show you His perspective on your circumstance. Try to look at your circumstance from God's heart of love. Let the "Spirit of God" take the "Word of God" to help show you your circumstances from God's perspective. He will reveal to you the truth of the circumstance.

Experiencing God #27 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-30T10:06:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #27

"I went through a lengthy time when God was silent. You probably have had that experience, too. I had been praying over many days, and there seemed to be total silence from God. I sensed that heaven was shut up. I didn't understand what was happening. Some folk have told me that if God does not hear my prayer, I have sin in my life. They gave me a 'sin checklist' to work through. I prayed through the sin checklist on this occasion. As far as I could tell, I was okay. I could not understand the silence of God."

"The only thing I knew to do was go back to God. I believe that the God who is in a love relationship with me will let me know what is going on in my life when and if I need to know."

"One morning I was reading the story of the death of Lazarus (John 11:1-45). When Jesus arrived Lazarus had been dead four days. Martha said to Jesus, 'Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died' (v32). Then the Spirit of God began to help me understand something. It seemed to me as if Jesus had said to Mary and Martha: 'You are exactly right. If I had come, your brother would not have died. You know that I could have healed him, because you have seen me heal many, many times. If I had come when you asked me to, I would have healed him. But, you would have never known any more about Me than you already know. I knew that you were ready for a greater revelation of Me than you have ever known in your life. I wanted you to come to know that I am the resurrection and the life. My refusal and My silence was not rejection. It was an opportunity for Me to disclose to you more of Me than you have ever known'".

"The silence of God means that He is ready to bring into my life a greater revelation of Himself than I have ever known. I immediately changed the whole attitude of my life toward God. With great anticipation, I began to watch for what God was going to teach me about Himself."

"Now, when I pray and there is a silence from God, I still pray through my sin checklist. Sometimes God's silences are due to sin in my life. If there is unconfessed sin in my life, I confess it and make it right. If, after that, there is still a silence with God, I get ready for a new experience with God that I have never known before."

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God

Experiencing God #26 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-30T10:04:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #26

Henry Blackaby says, "If I start asking God for one thing and something different happens, I always respond to what begins happening. I have found that God always has far more to give me than I can even ask or think." The Bible says, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever!" (Ephesians 3:20-21). You can't even think a prayer that comes close to what God wants to give you! Somtimes we pray for one thing and get another. That's because God has a better idea. He has a better answer.

One of the problems with our praying is that we rarely watch to see what happens in the time after we pray. We don't often relate the events that follow our praying to the requests that we have made to God. We need to learn to anticipate and watch for the activity of God in response to our praying. Pray! and then watch to see what happens next!

Today, make a request of God--something that is important to you. Write it down and then watch to see what happens in response. There are no cooincidences--just God's activity. As events unfold today, how can you join God? How can you adjust your plans to His?

October 24, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-10-24T15:48:00.000-06:00

We have a lot of people at Grace River who work behind the scenes and Grace River would not function without them. People like Skip and Roberta Schippert, Judy Brant, John and Karen Crisman and the Williamson family, along with many others, give their time and their energy to make Grace River a special place. We are blessed to have countless people who show worship to God through their gift of service. They all deserve to be recognized so I'm trying to track them all down and get them listed here. I'm getting there little by little...

This is John Williamson. John is half of the Grace River sound team. Often times, he is the unrecognized half of the sound team despite being absolutely instrumental to the entire worship team. He works hard; he never complains; and he has a heart for the Lord. If you see John, give him a pat on the back and tell him that he is appreciated.

This is Joey and Connie Scott (along with Pastor Dave and today's worship team.) Joey and Connie are our youth group leaders. They have never hesitated to open up their home to the teenagers of Grace River. Joey and Connie make themselves available to our kids 24/7 because they care about our kids that much. They are dedicated to the Lord and lead by example when it comes to showing our youth what it means to be Christ-followers.

This is today's worship team. Aubrey on keyboard, Kara singing, Derek singing and on guitar, Amanda singing, Jaren and Kyle on electric guitar, and Zach on drums. Our worship teams do a tremendous job. The only space they have available for practice during the week is in people's basements yet that doesn't hinder them one bit on Sunday mornings. Every Sunday they allow us to see their hearts and show us how much joy there is in going before God in worship.

Grace River is a remarkable church in which God has called tremendous people to. I look forward to seeing the plans that God has in store for us.

Experiencing God #25 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-24T14:49:00.001-06:00

Experiencing God #25

In addition to the Bible, one of the ways that God speaks to us is through prayer. Now please understand, prayer is not just the words that we say out of our mouth or even the thoughts of prayer that we think. Prayer is a love relationship through and through. Allow your mind and your emotions to come together as you express yourself to God and as you become sensitive to His expressions to you. Prayer is not God adjusting to you--it is you adjusting to God! It has been helpful for me to pray in the morning with an open Bible, an open notebook, and an open heart. I pray in the morning because I want to commit my day to God and I want to discover his revealed will for the day. I have my Bible open because I pray the Scriptures. I make them personal--inserting my name wherever appropriate reading the Scriptures outloud as a prayer. I have an open notebook because I want to be ready to write down the things that I sense God is saying. I write down Bible verses. I write down prayers. I write down successes and I write down failures. I write down problems and I write down solutions. I keep an open heart because it is not my agenda that matters--it is God's agenda that matters!

"And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don't know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words" (Romans 8:26).

Experiencing God #24 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-21T14:56:00.001-06:00

Experiencing God #24

The Bible is God's Word. It describes God's complete revelation of Himself to humanity. God speaks to us through the Bible. However, a person cannot understand spiritual truth unless the Spirit of God reveals it (1 Cor. 2:14). The Holy Spirit is the "Spirit of Truth" (John 14:17). The Spirit uses the Word of God to instruct us in the ways of God. On our own we cannot understand the truths of God. Unaided by the Spirit of God, it will be foolishness to us. Aided by the Spirit, we can understand all things.

Henry Blackaby says, "Reading the Scripture is an exciting time of anticipation for me. The Spirit of God knows the mind of God. He knows what God is ready to do in my life. The Spirit of God then begins to open my understanding about God and His purposes and His ways. I take that very seriously. Here is how I respond when God reveals truth to me in His Word. I write down the passage of Scripture. Then I meditate on it. I try to immerse myself in the meaning of that verse or passage. I adjust my life to the truth and, thus to God. I agree with God and take any action necessary to allow God to work in the way He has revealed. Then I alert myself to watch for ways God may use that truth in my life during the day."

Experiencing God #23 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-21T14:55:00.001-06:00

Experiencing God #23

In the Bible, whenever God speaks, He reveals something about Himself. He either reveals His name, or He reveals His purposes, or He reveals His ways.

When God reveals His name He is revealing His nature and His character. When you come across a name for God in the Bible or some revelation of His character don't move on too quickly. God is showing you who He is. He is perhaps showing you who you need Him to be today. Consider all that the name means and realize that God is saying to you that He will be that for you today.

When God reveals His purposes, He is letting you see His heart. He is showing you what He is all about. He is giving us an opportunity to adjust our lives to His life. Amos 3:7 says, "Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing His plans". I promise, you will be much more effective and more fulfilled in your life if you order your day around God's plans. Pray the prayer of Moses, "Show me your intentions and I will do exactly what you want me to do" (Exodus 33:13).

When God reveals His ways, He is showing you "how" He operates. The end does not justify the means. God has His ways and He expects us to copy them. How we do something is more important than the result. Study the scriptures to see "how" God accomplishes His purposes. Jesus is our best example.

So practice it right now. Open your Bible and read a paragraph. Look for God's revelation. Consider His character (name), His purposes, and His ways. Carry it with you throughout the day ready to experience God in His revelation.

Experiencing God #22 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-19T16:17:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #22

"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you" (John 14:26).

"When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me" (John 15:26).

"But when He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever he hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come" (John 16:13).

We cannot understand anything--not even the Word of God, without The Holy Spirit revealing it to us. We never "discover" truth. Rather, it is revealed! The same Spirit who indwells every believer is the very Spirit who inspired the Bible. We have all had the experience of reading the scriptures and not understanding what we were reading. It doesn't have to be that way. The author is available to guide you, lead you, and to teach you. As you read the Bible, invite the Holy Spirit to guide you into all truth. Ask Him to reveal to you the message that God would have for you from the text. Listen for God to reveal to you one of four things:

1. God may reveal truth about Himself.
2. God may reveal truth about you.
3. God may give you a promise.
4. God may give you a command.

Go ahead--try it right now. Open your Bible and read a paragraph asking for the Spirit's help in understanding what God might be saying to you in this very moment. Don't grow impatient and move on--wait! Read and reread the paragraph slowly stopping on each word. Is there a promise? Is there a command? Is there some revealed truth about God or about you? Write what you sense God may be saying and then write what your response will be.

Experiencing God #21 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-19T16:15:00.000-06:00

Experiencing God #21

"He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God" (John 8:47).

"God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son . . ." (Hebrews 1:1-2).

The Bible is filled with examples of God communicating with people. Throughout the Scriptures, He speaks in many unique and creative ways.

At least three things are true about how God communicated with individuals in the Bible:

When God spoke it was usually in a unique way to the person.
When God spoke the person being spoken to always knew that it was God.
When God spoke the person being spoken to always knew exactly what God was saying.

If you are trying to make a decision concerning a matter and if you do not have clear instruction from God--pray and wait. Don't make a mistake by getting in a hurry. Don't skip over the relationship that God is trying to build with you.

October 17, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-10-17T13:55:00.000-06:00

This is what a typical morning at Grace River looks like.

People gather in the foyer to socialize, drink coffee, and eat cookies.

The younger kids play together while the teenagers find places to sit and talk.

Friends spend time catching up with each other and gathering prayer needs.

But when 10:00am (or maybe 10:05 or even sometimes 10:10) rolls around we all come together and worship as one. Unity is important in our church. That doesn't mean that we are all carbon copies of each other. We celebrate diversity and we celebrate the different giftings God has given each person. Unity means that as a church we have the ability, at any given moment, to be able to come together as one in the presence of the Lord.

"May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Romans 15:5-6

Experiencing God #20 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-16T13:08:00.001-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.
Experiencing God #20

"Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand. . . For the Lord of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?" (Isaiah 14:24,27).

"For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6).

Everything that God starts--He finishes! This has got to be encouraging to all of us. We didn't begin the work of God and we can't complete it. It's God in the beginning, God in the middle, and God in the end. Jesus said, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End" (Revelation 22:13). This takes all of the pressure off. God invites you to join Him in His work but He is not waiting in heaven, with fingers crossed, hoping that you will get it done. He is doing it--beginning it--and finishing it! Just work with Him! Join Him!

Experiencing God #19 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-14T15:41:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #19

How do we know when God is at work? Well the simplest way is to look for things that are happening that only God can do. The Bible tells us that there are some things that only God can do. Here are six of them:

God draws people to himself.
God causes people to seek after him.
God reveals spiritual truth.
God convicts the world of guilt regarding sin.
God convicts the world of righteousness.
God convicts the world of judgment.

So, if you are talking with someone and they they begin talking about spiritual things--you can know that God is at work since they wouldn't think of spiritual things without God's prompting it. If someone else begins to confess a mistake that they have made--you can know that God is at work since he is the one who convicts of sin. These two examples would be God's invitation to join him in working in these two lives.

Make it a point today to listen to what people are saying. If you find yourself in the middle of a situation where one of the above six things is happening--congratulations! God is working around you and he is now inviting you to join him. Drop what you are doing and join God by investing your time and your love into the life before you. God put you there for that very purpose!

Experiencing God #18 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-13T15:08:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #18

There are three things about God that you should always remember:

1. He is all Powerful. That means that he can do anything! You can't have a problem too big for God to handle.
2. He is completely Wise. God never says, "Oops!". He always knows exactly what to do in every situation.
3. He is absolutely Loving. It is his nature to love and he loves you! He is always looking out for your best interest.

Consequently, God will never reveal to you several choices. He will only reveal the one perfect choice! We sometimes complicate our lives by making choices where there aren't any. God isn't asking you to choose--he is asking you to obey. He is asking you to trust him! Think about the three truths about God that I shared above and then determine whether or not you will trust God today.

Experiencing God #17 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-12T20:44:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #17

Frequently when God revealed himself to a person in the Bible, the person responded by declaring a name for God or by describing him in a new way. For the Hebrew, a person's name represented his character or described his nature. Biblical names, titles, and descriptions of God identify how people personally came to know God. The Scripture is a record of God's revelation of himself to man. Each name for God is a part of that revelation.

God's biblical names can be a call to worship for us. They can be the answer to our needs. His names tell us who God really is.

The internet contains multiple lists of the names for God that are found in the Bible. Here is one: http://smilegodlovesyou.org/names.html. You can even make your own list by writing down the names of God as you discover them in your own reading of Scripture.

I make it a habit to take a different name for God each day and to think about who He is and how He loves and helps me. Find a list of God's names and systematically work through the list taking a different name for each day. Pray to God and worship Him using that unique name. As you come to know Him--you will come to know His will!

Experiencing God #16 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-12T20:42:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

"Experiencing God #16

The call to relationship with God is also a call to be on mission with him. To know God--is to know God's will; and likewise to know God's will--is to know God. We're talking about two sides of the same coin. In order to know and do the will of God--you must come into close and intimate relationship with God. Jesus said, "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments" (Matthew 14:15). Again Jesus says, "He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me" (Matthew 14:21). Jesus plainly connects our loving relationship to God with our obedient submission to Him. The first step to knowing God's will is "knowing God".

Let me invite you to know God today. Jeremiah 29:13-14 says, "You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you..." May today be the day that you seek and consequently find the love of God."

October 10, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-10-12T20:39:00.000-06:00

We had our first ever Grace River chili cook-off. We had 11 entries and everyone voted on their favorite. Congratulations to Karen Chrisman on her victory. I'm sure Pastor Dave is already working on perfecting his chili recipe in an attempt to beat Karen in next year's cook-off.

We like to ignore this sign.....

Church Hike - Lion's Gulch

2010-10-09T17:24:00.000-06:00

We took our last church hike of the season today to Lion's Gulch which is about 12 miles west of Lyons.

It started off a little chilly but the sun was shining.

The aspen are turning so we enjoyed a lot of beautiful color.

One of the unique things about this trail is that we had to pass over 9 bridges.

Towards the end of this trail are a number of old mountain homesteads. At some of the homesteads, the only evidence of their existence are the old cast iron stoves.

Others have a little bit more.

This was a wonderful time of fun and fellowship and I look forward to more hikes next year.

Experiencing God #15 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-09T16:44:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #15

In the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, we see God relating to people in real, personal, intimate, and practical ways.

Love must be real and personal in order to be love. A person cannot love without another "someone" to love. God is pouring his love into your life. If for some reason, you cannot think of a time when your relationship to God has been real, personal, and practical, you need to spend some time evaluating your relationship to him. Go before the Lord in prayer and ask him to reveal the true nature of your relationship to him. Ask him to bring you into that kind of relationship.

The constant presence of God is the most practical part of your life and ministry. Unfortunately we often assign God to a limited place in our lives. Then we call on Him whenever we need help. That is the exact opposite of what we find in the Word of God. He is the One who is working in our world. He invites you to relate to Him, so He can accomplish his work through you.

Determine that today you will not settle for less than a relationship with God that is real, personal, and practical.

Experiencing God #14 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-07T19:08:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #14

"There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one" (Romans 3:10-12). Did you hear that? No one seeks God! God pursues us with His love or else we would never find Him--we wouldn't even start looking his way.

"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him . . . No one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him (John 6:44, 65). The Father draws us to Jesus. He passionately loves us into his care. If the thought of Jesus enters your heart or your mind today--it's because God has placed it there. Even in the thought of Jesus--God is speaking to you.

"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will last" (John 15:16). So, how does it feel to be chosen to be on God's team? When I was a kid we would choose teams by picking. Those who lacked ability were always chosen last--or sometimes they weren't chosen at all. As we stand among a sea of humanity throughout all generations--God chooses you! Now that's an honor! God is absolutely crazy about you! He doesn't pick you for nothing either--he knows that you can hit homeruns.

Go and knock one out of the park today!

Experiencing God #13 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-06T22:02:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #13

I keep a time alone with God every day, not in order to have a relationship, but because I have a relatonship. Because I love God, I want to meet with him every day in my quiet time. I want to spend time with him. The more time that I spend with God, the deeper our relationship grows and the easier it is for me to recognize and respond to his voice.

People in love spend time together primarily because they enjoy being with each other. You don't have to make them. It's not a discipline and it's not a duty. They simply love to be with each other!

Try this today: Take 30 minutes and take a walk with God. Spend time walking and talking with God. Try talking out loud to him. Focus your thoughts on the love of your heavenly Father. Praise him for his love and mercy. Thank him for expressions of his love to you. Express to God your love for him. Open up your heart to him. Take time to listen for his expressions of love towards you as well.

Experiencing God #12 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-05T14:43:00.001-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #12

God did not create you for time; he created you for eternity. Time (your lifetime on earth) provides the opportunity to get acquainted with God. It is an opportunity for Him to develop your character in His likeness. Then eternity will have its fullest dimensions for you. If you live for time (the here and now), you will miss the ultimate purpose of creation. If you live for time, you will allow your past to mold and shape yor life today. Your life as a child of God ought to be shaped by the future (what you will be one day). God uses your present time to mold and shape your future usefulness here on earth and in eternity.

You need to begin orienting your life to the purposes of God. His purposes go far beyond time and into eternity. Make sure you are investing your life, time and resources in things that are lasting and not things that will pass away. If you don't recognize that God created you for eternity, you will invest in the wrong direction.

Look for one way that you can join God today and invest in your eternity.

Experiencing God #11 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-04T18:36:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #11

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength" (Deuteronomy 6:4-5).

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment" (Matthew 22:37-38).

You were created for a relationship of love with God. Your relationship with God is more important than any other single factor in your life. God is the one who is initiating this love relationship with you--he is pursuing you! The purpose of your life is to be in relationship with God. God loves you! Love Him back!

October 3, 2010 - Sunday Service

2010-10-03T14:40:00.000-06:00

We had another incredible day at Grace River. The Holy Spirit shows up enough that it really shouldn't surprise me anymore. It's something I should just expect.

We are a portable church so every Sunday morning there is quite a bit to do from laying out cords and hooking up sound equipment to setting up chairs and getting the foyer and nursery ready.

One thing that is really great about Grace River is that our kids love coming to church. They are involved in every aspect of Grace River from helping the big kids (aka adults) set up in the morning to participating in worship to attending children's church. We love having them around.

What's just as great is that our pastors love coming to church too. They can be found on Sunday mornings right along side the set-up crew getting our space ready for the service.

We had another first today. We took communion for the first time at this location. This was a time to get quiet and just be with God.

We believe that everyone has access to God so because of that; we often do communion in a way in which everyone is served equally and there is no need for anyone to receive communion from another person.

We had another amazing day of worship. I think the congregation sang "Jesus Paid it All" louder than the worship leaders did.

It's important to have anointed pastors but its just as important to have anointed worship leaders. We have been very blessed at Grace River with the worship leaders God has sent us.

Prayer is an important part of our church so we take as much time as we need with it. Our church is a church for the broken and we recognize that healing often comes through prayer.

Till next week.......

Experiencing God #10 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-10-01T21:19:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

Experiencing God #10

When God speaks it is because he has a purpose in mind for your life. The moment God speaks to you is the very moment God wants you to respond to Him. His timing is critical. God tells you what to do at the precise moment that he wants you to begin doing it.

God develops character to match the assignment. Don't despise the hard work of becoming who he wants you to be--it's necessary in order to do what he wants you to do. Often, the difficulties that we face in life are God's preparation for our next assignment. Learn through your pain!

God has the right to interrupt your life at anytime he chooses. Should you face difficulties today or interruptions in your plans--consider the very real possibility that God is at that very moment inviting you to join him in something. It's an honor--Don't miss it!

Experiencing God #9 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-09-30T21:02:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

"Experiencing God #9

Our God is not a God of silence. The Bible insists that he is the God who speaks.

"Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son" (Hebrews 1:1-2).

"But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative--that is, the Holy Spirit--he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you" (John 14:26).

"When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. he will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me" (John 16:13-14).

"He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God" (John 8:47).

The key to knowing God's voice is not a formula. It is not a method you can follow. Knowing God's voice comes from an intimate love relationship with God.

Try praying this way today: Find five minutes of quiet and just close your eyes. Think no thoughts except God's love for you. Hear his love in your mind--and feel it in your heart. Resist the urge to speak or to think other thoughts--just feel God's love for you. As we learn to feel God's love, we will learn to hear his gentle whispers.

Experiencing God #8 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-09-29T16:57:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

"Experiencing God #8

George Mueller was a pastor in England during the nineteenth century. He was concerned that God's people had become very discouraged. They no longer looked for God to do anything unusual. They no longer trusted God to answer prayers. They had so little faith.

God began to lead George to pray. George's prayers were for God to lead him to a work that could only be explained by the people as an act of God. George wanted the people to learn that their God was a faithful, prayer-answering God. He came upon Psalm 81:10: "Open wide your mouth and I will fill it". God began to lead him in a walk of faith that became an outstanding testimony to all who hear of his story.

When George felt led of God to do some work, he prayed for resources needed and told no one of the need. He wanted all to know that God had provided for the need only in answer to prayer and faith. During his ministry in Bristol, George started the Scriptural Knowledge Institute for distribution of Scripture and for religious education. He also began an orphanage. By the time of his death, George Mueller had been used by God to build four orphan houses that cared for 2,000 children at a time. Over 10,000 children had been provided for through the orphanages. He distributed over eight million dollars that had been given to him in answer to prayer. When he died at 93, his worldly possessions were valued at $800.

How did he know and do the will of God? He writes, "I never remember a period of time that I ever sincerely and patiently sought to know the will of God by the teaching of the Holy Ghost, through the instrumentality of the Word of God, but I have been always directed rightly. But if honesty of heart and uprightness before God were lacking, or if I did not patiently wait upon God for instruction, or if I preferred the counsel of my fellow men to the declarations of the Word of the living God, I made great mistakes."

Here is how he summed up the way he entered into a "heart" relationship with God and learned to discern God's voice:

I seek at the beginning to get my heart into such a state that it has no will of its own in regard to a given matter. Nine-tenths of the trouble with people generally is just here. Nine-tenths of the difficulties are overcome when our hearts are ready to do the knowledge of what His will is.

Having done this, I do not leave the result to feeling or simple impression. If so, I make myself liable to great delusions.

I seek the Will of the Spirit of God through, or in connection with, the Word of God. The Spirit and the Word must be combined. If I look to the Spirit alone without the Word, I lay myself open to great delusions also. If the Holy Ghost guides us at all, He will do it according to the Scriptures and never contrary to them.

Next I take into account providential circumstances. These often plainly indicate God's Will in connection with His Word and Spirit.

I ask God in prayer to reveal His Will to me aright.

Thus, through prayer to God, the study of the Word, and reflection, I come to a deliberate judgment according to the best of my ability and knowledge and if my mind is thus at peace, and continues so after two or three more petitions, I proceed accordingly.

--Henry Blackaby, Experiencing God, p.33-34."

Experiencing God #7 - Pastor Dave's Bible Study

2010-09-28T16:09:00.000-06:00

Broadcast e-mail from Pastor Dave.

"Experiencing God #7

God's was going to deliver Israel from captivity in Egypt. Moses attempted to take matters into his own hands. Read Exodus 2:11-15 to see what happened (it didn't end well). it is always best to do things God's way. Our plans (apart from God) are worthless!

"I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it. But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices. If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways, how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes!" (Psalm 81:10-14). God is willing to fill our open mouths if we would just quiet down, listen, and then submit to him. We adjust our lives to God so that He can do through us what He wants to do. God will not adjust to us!

Today, maybe we can stop talking so much and learn to listen. Understanding what God is doing where we are is far more important than telling God what we want to do for Him. Take a moment today to close your eyes and just listen..."