And where do we eat on Saturday?

"Okay, what if the Cathy family became Adventists?

 Sure, they'd be open Sundays, but they'd have to change the name to Veg-fil-A."

--Church Curmudgeon

Super Powers

On the other hand, some of us are not still young, Marcus. In point of fact, we despair of ever achieving super power status. It is sufficient to be able to rise, shower and dress; to then place one foot in front of the other, to find the coffee pot and a mug. Fly? I think not. In the dreams and fantasies of our youth, we moved the earth, we conquered worlds. We are fortunate indeed to have lived a life in which we did not provide serious impediment to the progress of society. "Lead, follow, or get out of the way". Some of us exercised sufficient "powers" to stay out of the way.

We, too, merit recognition.

Cartoon: Foxtrot by Bill Amend

[Thanks to STSTT, 2010.]

#Adulting --4

Still in II Peter 1:6
     ". . . giving all diligence, add to your faith goodness; and to goodness knowledge; And to knowledge self-control; and to self-control perseverance. . ."

"Adulting is sorta like doing what you have to do when you don't feel like it."  --JB











   feelings

"x" the point at which faith crashes into the descent
of the emotional high.



faith

Pastor drew a graph in which "feelings" are represented by a descending line while the growth of faith is indicated by the line along the bottom of the chart.  (His artwork much better than mine.)

The "x" represents the point at which a decision must be made:  Do I give up or go on?
Many settle; inadvertantly give up; the heart grows cold.

But
Something else is possible.  This is where perseverance starts, faith grows.  Bad things in our lives still happen but we continue to grow in faith and over time faith is off the chart!

God works in you.
Through perseverance our zeal and passion begin to ride on faith instead of riding on our feelings.

The ultimate gift we find in the midst of our faith:

 JOY!

In time your faith will be off the chart!

The joy of the Lord is your strength.

Our relationship with Christ is not based on everything going right, but on faith.   

Purpose to go on.

God's got this.  So you got this.

Pastor Johnnie Blair

Sunday morning 

                                                                          

I Had a Thought Five Seconds Ago

Teflon brain.  A million thoughts slide across my cerebral cortex; virtually nothing sticks.

Wherefore Art Thou, Ducky?

Bam!   Herk comes storming through his back door.  I can hear him growling before he reaches the edge of my yard.

"That woman!  My rubber duckies were not on the rim of the tub this morning.  I looked in the cabinets and drawers.  Nope.

"At breakfast I said, 'Tildy, do you know where my rubber duckies are?'

"'Yes,' she said.  'It is so silly for a grown man to keep rubber ducks in his tub.  I gave them to the neighbor kids.'

"Can you believe it?"  Herk fumed.  "I know it is silly to keep rubber duckies in my tub.  That's the point!"

#Adulting --3

Still in II Peter, chapter 1.
     ". . . giving all diligence, add to your faith goodness; and to goodness knowledge;
 And to knowledge self-control. . ."

 Further, we read from Romans 7:15-24  Paul's plaint, "Oh, wretched man that I am. . ."

When life gets out of control we sometimes find ourselves inwardly out of control.
     Substances, activities, attitudes we hang onto, not because we want to but because we can't help it.

These may be areas out of control in your life, but
     You can participate in the divine nature of Jesus Christ.  He will conform you to control when you submit to His will!

"Where sin abounds, grace abounds much more."   (Romans 5:20)

We must give God control; ask the Holy Spirit to give us a better sense of self-control.
We must place ourselves in God's hands.

We will have power over our flesh only if

we submit to the power of the Holy Spirit.

We have self-control when the Holy Spirit lives within!

1  Acknowledge that there are things over which you do not have control.

2. There are things over which you have lost control

3. Ask God for forgiveness.  Ask God for freedom.

4. Allow the Holy Spirit to do His work. 

Live like you got it!

Pastor Johnnie Blair

Sunday morning