SATURDAY, August 2nd, 2008

I cannot describe the excitement in my heart right now about going to the wilds tomorrow! I am ready to jump out of my skin. I am so happy that each of you teenagers are going to the wilds with us! This will be one of the best trips of your life!

Today is Saturday... Let me give you a few details about what is going on today, and if you want to come up to the church and help get the vans ready or help in any other way, feel free to call me and join us!

6:00 am : Men's Prayer Breakfast
7:45 am : Go to Home Depot and buy mulch
8:15 am : Go to church and work on the landscape
10:30 am : Go to the Dollar Car Rental to pick up three vans
11:30 am : Make sure all of the vans are ready to go to the wilds
12:00 pm : work on the church van to make sure everything is ready

Then go to bed so that I can get up, go to church, and then go to the wilds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
P.S. We also have a suprise planned din Jacksonville for you guys! You are going to LOVE IT!!!

A Few Thoughts From Yesterday:

Michael: Great Job again! As always! Are you excited about camp?

Jake: Good to see you man!

Red Head: What about doing the devotions man!!!

Jeff: You can bring your whole house... When you see the size of the trailer that we are taking, then you will agree with me :)

Katie: I love you, you are a wonderful wife!!! Thanks for all you do!!

GABY: Hey Girl!!!! Good to see you on here! I AM SO GLAD YOU ARE GOING TO THE WILDS!

Josh L: That is a great video! I have seen it before and it fits perfect with this trip!

Marvino: TELL YOU BROTHER TO DO HIS DEVOTIONS!!!!!

Rachel: I do like cats!! They taste delicious!! :)

John 21

15 So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Feed My lambs.”
16 He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My sheep.”
17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.

18 Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.”
19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”

20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?”
21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?”
22 Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”
23 Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you?”
24 This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true.
25 And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.

Well in these 11 verses there are several lessons: In verses 15 - 17 Jesus asks Peter THREE TIMES if Peter loves "Him" Jesus. I think it is great that Jesus allows Peter to say "I Love You" Three times to make up for the three times that Peter denied Christ. We should tell Jesus how much we love Him all the time. He enjoys hearing it! I guarantee it!

In verse 19 we see Christ tell his disciples: "Follow Me"

As we see in the remainder of the passage, We must not focus on whether our friends "follow Jesus" or not. Instead, we must focus on our own selves. We must make sure that we ARE FOLLOWING OUR LORD AND SAVIOR.

I think it is great how Jesus keeps saying: "What is that to you? YOU FOLLOW ME!" In other words: Jesus says: Peter, you don't need to watch them, watch me!! AND FOLLOW ME!

Verse 25 is AMAZING!!!!! John says that Jesus Christ did so many things while He was on this earth, that if someone had written everything down, that Christ did, The world could not hold all of the books that would be written.

Wow! We have an AMAZING GOD!!! Our God has done so many good things that we cannot even comprehend it. I heard a preacher say: We will spend the first billion years in Heaven just thanking God for all of the good things He did in our life.

We have a good God!!!! Let's live for Him!!!

WE ARE GOING TO THE WILDS IN LESS THAN 30 HOURS!!!!!!!!!

FRIDAY, August 1st, 2008

WE ARE LEAVING THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW!!!!!!!!!

Let me talk with each of you really quickly: I am not really even sure if you are going to get this message because many of you have stopped coming on here within the last few days. I want to encourage you to get on and do your devotions before midnight. I truly think that the most profitable time for you to do your devotions is in the morning. Let me explain why... You have everything that you have just read fresh on your mind throughout the whole day. If you are just now doing it today for the first time and it is late right now, that is ok, but tomorrow... the day before we leave to go to the wilds, and Sunday before we get on the road, put your time with God FIRST!! Make God the first person you talk to each morning!! I really want you guys to stay faithful we will be finishing the book of John tomorrow... The Day before we go to the wilds!! Do your devotions early in the day tomorrow!!!

A Few Thoughts From Yesterday:
Michael: I love the way that you use cross reference with other scripture to make the point!! Great Job!!!!! That is so cool!
Jessica M: Wow!! In the morning!!! Sweet! I am so impressed!!! Are you having fun with all your company??
Cary: Type out an application too man!!! Think about how it applies to you specifically! Thanks for being so faithful!!!!
Josh Jeff and Josh: Thanks for spending those 2 hours with me yesterday. I had fun! I hope you guys can sell some cards today!!!
Marvino: Hey man! That is Koine Greek. Cool Huh!
Kervin: I am glad that you are going to the wilds!!! We missed you guys Wednesday Night??!?! What happened?? I could not pick people up because the little kids have the churchvan at their camp.
Tricia: TELL AMY TO GET ON HERE! :) I am so glad that you are able to go to thewilds with us!!!
Rachel: UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!! You are more excited about a CAT than the WILDS?!?!?!?!? What in the WORLD!!!
Mallory: HEY!!!! Im SO GLAD YOUR BACK ON!!!!! DID YOU HAVE A GREAT VACATION??

John 21

1 After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself:
2 Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together.
3 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”They said to him, “We are going with you also.” They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing.
4 But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.
5 Then Jesus said to them, “Children, have you any food?” They answered Him, “No.”
6 And He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish.
7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea.
8 But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with fish.
9 Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have just caught.”
11 Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken.
12 Jesus said to them, “Come and eat breakfast.” Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, “Who are You?”—knowing that it was the Lord.
13 Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish.
14 This is now the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He was raised from the dead.

This is one of my top 3 favorite passages in the Gospel of John! Let me explain why. Once again, we see what Peter is like, and I love it! Let's start at the top and work our way through the passage.

Jesus shows himself to the disciples again, and here is how He does it: Several of Christs desciples are hanging out together, when Peter decides that He wants to go out and go fishing. The disciples decide to go fishing with Him and they catch no fish all night long.

A "man" (Jesus) shouts to them from the shore and asks them: "Have you caught any fish" they answer: "No". Then "the man" tells them to throw the net on the right side of the boat. They do what He said, and so many fish get in the net they literally CANNOT PULL THE NET IN THE BOAT!!!

This part is SO GREAT!!! While they are standing there, struggling to get the net in the boat... Peter thinks to himself... this is something that Jesus would have done. Then He looks up, realizes that it is Jesus on the shore and what does He do??? HE PLUNGES INTO THE WATER!!!!! Peter is so passionate about seeing Jesus again that He jumps into the water to swim to Him.

Are you that passionate about seeing Christ? Peter did not care about ANYTHING!! He didnt care about getting wet, getting dirty, getting laughed at, getting tired.... He DID NOT CARE!! Peter simply wanted to be with Jesus!!! What if we were so passionate about being with Christ. How can we be passionate about being with Christ?? Well I can think of several ways...

We can be excited to spend time in His word, we can be excited about having His word preached to us, we can be excited about worshiping Him at church, we can be excited about fellowshiping with his people, we can be excited about serving Him in different ministries... the list goes on!! What if we were as passionate about serving our Lord as Peter was??

Think about this as well... Who was it that tried to walk on the water?? Peter, but this time, He just jumped in and swam... think about this... He was not this perfect follower of Jesus, in fact, He had just denied Jesus a week or so before this. Although He did not have enough faith to run on the water to the shore where Jesus stood, He had enough faith to jump into the water and SWIM as hard as he could to get to Jesus... Take a moment and visualize this moment in your mind... It is both funny, and wonderful!!!

So the boat was about 110 yards from shore... Think about how funny this is: Peter jumps out to swim to Jesus, and the disciples say, hey lets paddle the boat to the shore... So they all went back to the shore... Peter just went in the water :) I LOVE HIS PASSION!!!!!!!!!!!!

They all get to the shore and they eat breakfast with Jesus. This moment must have reminded them of the last meal they ate together just before Jesus was crucified. What a wonderful breakfast on the shore of the beach!!

GET PASSIONATE ABOUT YOU LORD!!!! LOVE HIM LIKE PETER LOVED HIM!!! LIVE FOR HIM PASSIONATELY!!! YOU WON'T REGRET IT!

Love you all!!!!!! CALL EVERYONE AND TELL THEM TO DO THEIR DEVOTIONS!!!!!

THURSDAY, July 31st, 2008

Where was everyone yesterday? Stay strong as we finish the book of John this week! I am so excited about the wilds. (Incase I have not told you)

Call someone who has slipped off the devotions and remind them to DO THEIR DEVOTIONS!!

LAST NIGHT WAS GREAT! REMEMBER: bring a separate bag with your tooth brush deoderant and one change of clothes for the first night in Jacksonville!!! We are going to have such a wonderful time!

John 20

1 Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.
2 Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”
3 Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb.
4 So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first.
5 And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in.
6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there,
7 and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself.
8 Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed.
9 For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.
10 Then the disciples went away again to their own homes.

Mary Magdalene Sees the Risen Lord
11 But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb.
12 And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
13 Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”
14 Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.
15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher).
17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’”
18 Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.

The Apostles Commissioned
19 Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
20 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”
22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Seeing and Believing
24 Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
25 The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”
26 And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!”
27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

That You May Believe
30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book;
31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.

Wow! This is such an incredible passage! I love this story. This is the account of the disciples and Christs closest followers as they find out that Jesus is not dead, but He is risen!!! I think we should read this chapter at easter. It was not difficult to understand today and that is refreshing! Lets go back to the top and adress thought by thought:

Mary is visiting the tomb of Jesus while it is still dark and when she sees the tomb and realizes that the stone has been moves she RUNS home to get the disciples!!! So Peter and another disciple run to the tomb where Jesus was laid. (I think it is funny that Peter was not a fast runner :) Well, not as fast as the other disciple)

They get to the tomb and saw and believed that Jesus' body had been taken from the tomb... It literally says: They did not know that Christ would be raised from the dead. (even though He told them He would raise his body up after 3 days)

Next we see Mary in the tomb and she is crying... Then there are two "angels" that ask her. Woman WHO DO YOU SEEK AND WHY DO YOU WEEP?? Ha! They were poets and they didn't even know it!! GET THIS: So, Mary turns and see's a man standing there are she thinks He is the gardener?!?! The man standing there is Jesus! When Mary called Him a gardener then Jesus called out her name: MARY! and she immediately knew who He was!

In verses 19 - 22 we see Jesus telling the disciples that just as God sent Him, Jesus was sending them to do the work of God. To share the Gospel with the lost!

Then we see Thomas: This is probably the most convicting part of this chapter: The disciples tell Thomas that Jesus had risen from the dead, and how did Thomas respond??? Well, they don't call Him doubting Thomas for nothing. He said, I DOUBT IT!! UNLESS I TOUCH THE HOLES IN HIS HANDS AND THE HOLE IN HIS SIDE I WILL NOT BELIEVE.

OFten times we will do this: God if you are really who you say you are then you will do this for me! We put our trust on God on terms that If He obeys us then we will believe! God tells Thomas that It is good that He believes but for those who believe without seeing Him, would be blessed for their FAITH!!!!!

Let's trust God! Just take Him at his word and trust Him! He has proven Himself over and over, we do not need to make Him prove anything else. Lets just place our faith in Him!!!

WEDNESDAY, July 30th, 2008

Wow. Where was everyone yesterday? It was such a great passage, and yet we had so few people do their devotions. That was disapointing! I hope that you are calling up your partners and reminding them to do their devotions.

Tonight is going to be a great night! Listen, if you are going to camp you DEFINITELY need to be in church tonight! I am going to give you a few last minute reminders about some things you will need to bring!

INFO ABOUT THE DEVOTIONS:
I want us to finish the book of John before we go to camp and that means that we have 3 chapters left in three days, so the next three days are going to be bigger chapters than normal, but I think it will be good for us. Take an extra few minutes and read through this longer passage. This does NOT mean that you need to describe EVERY verse, but pick out the most powerful verses that spoke to you throughout the passage. This will only be for a few days, then we will study some other great passages.

A Few Thoughts From Yesterday:
Michael: That was so great yesterday! I really enjoy reading your thoughts about the passages we are studying!
Bethany: You are correct when you say it was good that Pilate did not believe Jesus did anything wrong, the problem with Pilate is that instead of doing what was right, He followed the crowd. Pretty interesting Huh!
Jessica M: Wow! It is so good to have you back on here! I must say, I missed you each day that you were not on! Hey really quick, let me explain my thoughts about the version we use. In college I had to write several different papers and do many different studies on the different texts. In my studies I found that the men who translated the greek text that would one day be the KJV and the NKJV were EXTREMELY precise and dedicated believers. However the men who translated the modern versions were named Wescott and Hort. These men were UNBELIEVERS and it seems that sometimes they were careless or even biased in their translations. In other words they would change the text to say what they wanted it to say... Now, I am definitely not going to tell you that there could never be anything better than the KJV. Personally I believe that our language has shifted drastically within the last 150 years. I also believe that because of this language shift many people (like you and many other young people) have a hard time studying through the KJV. That is why each day I take the time to explain each passage in more common words. But I dont want you to only take it from me: We will be going to some much easier passages after we finish the book of John. So please bear with me for a few more days in the book of John and then it will get easier.

Do this: Go study up on the subject and tell me what you find out, I am always up for a good, healthy, debate, and I always keep an open mind, If what I have learned is not the most accurate truth then I am willing to admit it.

I will also do some more research on the topic as well...
Rachel: Yes you could say it was a "majority rules thing" or like "everyone was following the crowd"!
Marvin: So did you remind Kervin? Or did you not tell Him because He never tells you??
Ryan: you are Right On! Jesus does love us!
John M: Be Triangle? I dont know what that means, but I know I don't want to be a triangle, SO I WILL BE THERE!!!
Tyler: Good stuff man! Are you ready for camp??

John 19

17 And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha,
18 where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center.
19 Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was:
JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
20 Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.
21 Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘He said, “I am the King of the Jews.”’”
22 Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece.
24 They said therefore among themselves, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be,” that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: “ They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.”Therefore the soldiers did these things.

25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
26 When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!”
27 Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.

28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!”
29 Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth.
30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.

Jesus’ Side Is Pierced
31 Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.
32 Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him.
33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.
34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out.
35 And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe.
36 For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, “Not one of His bones shall be broken.”
37 And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on Him whom they pierced.”

Jesus Buried in Joseph’s Tomb
38 After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus.
39 And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds.
40 Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury.
41 Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid.
42 So there they laid Jesus, because of the Jews’ Preparation Day, for the tomb was nearby.

I don't know about you, but as I read this with an open mind and heart, I see so many new things that I have not seen before. I think it is so neat How even in His death Jesus cares for His mother and tells another disciple to take care of Her.

I think it is so great how over and over in this passage every detail went exactly as was propecied. Down to the detain of not breaking Jesus bones... To dividing and casting lots for Jesus' clothes. Jesus Christ knew what was going to happen at this moment because He was had told the writers of the old testament what to write down when the word of God was inspired.

It is interesting to read Johns account of the crucifixion... John was not concerned about the graphic details, John simply wanted us to know what happened and then get that part over with. I think I would have been the same way... I think it would have just made me mad to write about every detail about what happened on the cross!!

I think it is wonderful how Jospeh and Nicodemus went and bought a brand new tomb and they went and got the best wraps and spices to take care of Jesus body... Thre really cool part is that all of that wasnt really necessary because in just three short days, this body of Christ would no longer be dead.

I am so thankful that Christ was willing to be sacrificed for my sin. He knew what He was going to have to go through, and He said, I love each of you SO MUCH that I will do it anyway!! What a wonderful God we have! Like Ryan said yesterday: HE SURE DOES LOVE US!!!!

TUESDAY, July 29th, 2008

It is a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood!!
I am thankful that you are doing your devo's today!!

A Few Thoughts From Yesterday:
Lucy and Jessica: Have fun at Word of Life Camp! I am excited that you will both be going to camp with us next year!!
McCue: We are so excited for you to come HOME!!! I hope you are having a great time! I must tell you, I am very dissapointed that your finals are when we are at camp... so I cannot go to the movies and watch them. Sad for Me!
Tricia: I already paid for you so we have to work something out :(
Michael: Glad you are on here man! Are you excited about camp?
Rachel: Glad you are back! I was worried there for a little bit! :) (not really! I knew there must have been a good reason!)
Bethany: We missed you Sunday! Did you have a good time in Fort Myers?
Kervin: Bedding: Sleeping Bag OR Sheets (a fitted sheet and a regular sheet will be fine) and a Pillow. #2 Very Good Question: We will not be unloading the trailer at my parents house, so If you want a shower or new clothes pull them out before you load your suit case. We will not be changing after the morning service because we are driving straight to Trinity for the evening service! :) #3: That is plenty of money for you and me!! :)
Jon Massey: What is going on man! We have missed you guys! You and your sis were part of the "most faithful"!! Let's just say: We missed you! TELL YOUR SISTER TO DO HER DEVOS!!!!!!
Tyler: Very Good Job Describing the passage! I am going to have you do the devotional blog whenever I cannot. You explained it VERY WELL!!!!

John 18
39 “But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Do you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”
40 Then they all cried again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.

John 19
1 So then Pilate took Jesus and scourged Him.
2 And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe.
3 Then they said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck Him with their hands.
4 Pilate then went out again, and said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I find no fault in Him.”
Pilate’s Decision
5 Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, “Behold the Man!”
6 Therefore, when the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “You take Him and crucify Him, for I find no fault in Him.”

Here begins the crucifixion process. The process that Christ chose to endure so that we could be forgiven and allowed into God's Holy Heaven. It is a shame that this story can sometimes seem trite, or lacking in effectiveness because of it's repetitiveness. But when we read the story, visualizing Christ as He is struck in the face, imagining the crown of thorns being "Twisted" on His head, and then reminding ourselves that Christ went through this because of His love for us.

If Jesus Christ did not "endure the cross" then we would have no hope. Yet Christ came and died for the World who so often HATES HIM! (Did you notice they let Barabas, a thief, go free because they wanted to see Christ crucified) What an amazing Love Christ has for you and me!!! I don't know about you but I cannot comprehend it completely! I do know that I am so thankful for His love and for His sacrifice.

And I do know that I want to live my life so that no one could ever look at me and think that His sacrifice was in vain. I want people to see the difference that Christ and his loving sacrifice for me has made in my life!

As we study this wonderful/ heartbreaking story of the crucifixion try to look at it through fresh eyes. Look for things that you have not seen or thought of before. If we can grasp what Christ was willing to do for us during this time, then I believe we will have no greater motivation that to live for Him with all our hearts!!

MONDAY, July 28th, 2008

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!!!!!!!!!! ONE WEEK FROM TODAY WE WILL BE DRIVING ON I-95 HEADED TO THE WILDS!!!!!!! I cannot tell you in words on this computer how excited I am... (You would understand it is yousaw my face right now!!!)


Yesterday was a great day!! We had a great time, and if you were not here then you missed out!Ok, Guys! Last week there were like 32 comments per day, but when we got to the weekend it was cut in half!!! Lets stay on track thhis week and make sure all of our partners are doing their devotions!!!!! .com :)

On to the passage for today:

John 18
33 Then Pilate entered the Praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?”
34 Jesus answered him, “Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?”
35 Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?”
36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”
37 Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”
38 Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.

This is such an interesting passage! I am going to explin this verse by verse so that you can dramatize this in your mind. Here is the background of the passage: Jesus has now been taken by the soldiers and they have taken Him to Pilate so that they could have Jesus Crucified.
Pilate did not want to Kill Jesus, because He could find no fault in Him. (Which was exactly the truth, there was no fault in him, because He never sinned)

So Pilate and Jesus begin this dialogue with each other:

Pilate begins by asking, "are you the king of the Jews?"

Jesus asks Pilate, are you asking because you truly want to know, or are you asking because everyone told you to ask?

Then Pilate, almost sarcastically says: "am I a jew?" That is basically saying: "Why would I care who you are??" Then Pilate admits, that the only reason that He is even asking is because the Jews want to kill Him and He is tryingh to decide what to do.

Then Pilate asks an interesting question: He says: " What have you done?"

So in verses 36 and 37 Jesus tells them why the people want to kill Him. He says: This is not "now" (or yet) my kingdom. then Pilate asks: "so you are a king" and Jesus tells Him: "Yes Sir! That is why I was born, and that is why I came to earth so that I could bear witness of the truth.

Jesus says right there, He came to be a witness of the truth. Then Pilate asks the age old question: One that is still asked today: "What is truth?"

Truth can be defined like this: "Fidelity to the original"

In other words, when something is the truth, it is the same as or equal to the original. Jesus is the TRUTH! He is the same as, or equal to the original, God the father!! Jesus is God, and that is what He came to bear witness of! That He is the savior and God of the world!!!!! He is so great!!

SUNDAY, July 26th, 2008

ONE WEEK FROM TODAY WE ARE GOING TO THE WILDS!!!!!
I am so excited! Please make sure that each one of you are in Sunday School. The next three services are very important information regarding our trip to the wilds. You do not want to miss any of them!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TYLER!!!! we missed you in church today!! :)

Yesterday:
Wow, you can really tell whenever the weekend comes, we go from 32 devotions to 16. Lets try to give God more than half! He deserves our all, and that means that each one of us must do our part FAITHFULLY to stay in His word!!

Today for your comments say something about what you may have learned in either Sunday School, the AM Worship service or the PM Worship service!!!

Thanks and See each of you tomorrow!